Brendan Roberts secured a narrow two point lead in the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup Championship this weekend, after finishing in fourth place at Donington Park. He now has a two point lead from eventual race winner Xavier Simeon and three points from Max Berger, leaving the Championship wide open for the final two rounds of the Championship, at Magny-Cours (France) and Portimao (Portugal).
Roberts riding on the 1098R for the Ducati Xerox Junior Team finished a lonely fourth place after struggling with his tyres in the wet race conditions. The 23-year-old Australian battled hard over the weekend in the torrential conditions at Donington Park and eventually qualified in fifth place on the grid for the 12-lap race.
A good start in the race saw Roberts to third by the first corner and second as he went down Craner Curves. In a dramatic first lap, with riders crashing out in all directions Roberts settled into a rhythm and was sitting in second place at the end of the opening lap.
By the end of lap three Simeon and Giugliano had worked their way past and pushed Roberts back to fourth place, where he managed to keep a distance from Brands Hatch winner and Championship contender Max Berger. Berger was eventually caught and passed on the final lap by Jon Kirkham, giving Roberts a few more vital points in the overall Championship table.
Roberts:"I'm a bit disappointed not to have gained a podium position, as Donington is a track I like and I was hoping for a good result. With the weather conditions changing throughout the weekend it was a hard decision to know which tyres to run with during the race, as the track was wet in some places and dry in others. We choose to run wets and in the closing stages of the race I had no grip on the rear tyre. Despite my best efforts to try and catch Giugliano I was unable to and had to settle for fourth place. We have two rounds left and there is on eight points between myself and fourth place and anything can happen. I need to keep focused on the job in hand and do the best I can at the remaining rounds and hope for a good result at them."
More information: brendan-roberts.com
