Michael Rutter and his ISILON MSS Discovery Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R have taken pole position by the narrowest of margins for Saturday’s two Superbike races at the North West 200. The 34-year-old from Kirkby Mallory set a best average lap time of 122.22mph, beating Bruce Anstey’s time of 122.21mph! Team-mate Stuart Easton starts in 16th position. In the Supersport qualifying, the weather hampered proceedings, but Michael will start the race in 11th while his 23-year-old team-mate will start just behind him in 12th position.
Michael Rutter, Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R (1st in Superbike, 11th in Supersport) “I’m so happy to have pole, but it’s very close. It’s a great result for the team who’ve worked so hard and for Kawasaki. I think being on pole doesn’t make a lot of difference here as the straights are so long, but that makes for a thrilling race. Unfortunately we haven’t had a dry practice session with the 600 so we will have to see what we can do. Fingers crossed!”
Stuart Easton, Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R (16th in Superbike, 12th in Supersport) “The guys did a great job sorting the problem out with the big bike, but not in time for the qualifying, so I missed the dry session. We’re ready for the race though. In Supersport we suffered when it rained on a mile section of the circuit so we didn’t go any quicker, but I’m hopeful for the races. I think my best chances of a result are on the Superbike as I was running in the top six before our technical problem on Tuesday.”
Nick Morgan, Team Owner “It would be awesome if we could win it – it’s be such a morale booster – but there are still a few big names out there and it’s going to be tough. This is very good preparation for the TT for us as Michael has said the bike is immensely stable which is perfect for the Isle of Man. I’ve got to say a big thank you to one of the Kawasaki dealers over here called Motoplus. We contacted Laurence Ferguson and he’s helped us out with a number of things to smooth our qualifying sessions. It’s nice to know we have an extended ‘green-team’ over here!”
Stuart Simmonds, Joint Team Owner “What a result! And it’s so close! We know pole may not mean much for the race, but it shows that the bike is good on the roads. I feel for Stuart not getting any dry practice in on the 600, but we know he’s gone faster before so let’s hope for a good, dry race for him.”
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