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Pole followed by Two Podiums for Mason at Knockhill
12 August 2008
Gary Mason qualified first out of the Cup riders on the Q8Oils lubricated Quay Garage Racing Honda superbike at Scotland’s premier circuit and proceeded to secure a place on the podium in both races. Always strong in qualifying, Mason was not only the fastest Cup rider but started the race ahead of several racers from the main Superbike teams, including Rizla Suzuki’s Atsushi Watanabe and Hydrex Honda’s Guy Martin. Rain just before the first race left a dry line on the track on the other side of the grid from Gary, who was on slicks. With such a narrow dry line it took time to pass people, but once clear of the slower riders Mason showed his pace and took the win, setting the fastest lap into the bargain. Martin Jessopp of Riders Racing followed him in second, with Chris Burns on the MV Agusta in third place.
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Victory for Sykes at Knockhill
12 August 2008
Rizla Suzuik’s Tom Sykes took his third win in a row at the eighth round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Knockhill in Scotland today, and then backed it up in a damp crash-littered shortened second race with a competitive fourth place. After a good start in race one, Sykes battled with Ducati's Michael Rutter on the damp but fast drying track, passing him on lap nine and never looking back. After winning the last two races at Oulton Park it marked a unique hat-trick of victories for the Huddersfield ace. Rizla Suzuki's Atsushi Watanabe started from 16th on the grid and was fighting for a season's best top 10 result when he was hit by another rider and crashed out unhurt.
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Successful Free Practice for Sykes & Watanabe at Knockhill
12 August 2008
Rizla Suzuki’s Tom Sykes and Atsushi Watanabe got the eighth round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Knockhill off to a good start today, with Sykes taking third place and Watanabe finishing in an encouraging 14th.
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Rizla Suzuki Prepares for Highland Fling
06 August 2008
Rizla Suzuki’s Tom Sykes fresh from his impressive debut ride at World Superbike level is now limbering up for the challenges of Knockhill in Scotland, ahead of the eighth round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship. Following on from his double win at Oulton Park and his top 10 finish at World Superbikes, Sykes is on a roll and hopes to capitalise on his recent run of form. Now in third place in the Championship he is hungry for more wins and more points in order to close down the gap to second place overall.
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Debut Double for Delighted Sykes
21 July 2008
Rizla Suzuki’s Tom Sykes won his debut and second British Superbike races in quick succession to claim an emotional double win at the seventh round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park in Cheshire today. Starting from third on the grid in the opening race, Yorkshire ace Tom led from lap seven and never looked back, winning by a dominant five seconds despite admitting to nerves as the laps ticked down and heavy clouds menaced the 2.69-mile circuit. In race two he took the lead on lap two and then maintained a slim advantage under enormous pressure to the chequered flag, riding with impressive composure and speed. He capped the day by setting the fastest lap in both races and moves from sixth to third in the title race.
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Thrilling Third for Sykes at Oulton Park
19 July 2008
Rizla Suzuki’s Tom Sykes took a hard fought third place at Oulton Park for round seven of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, while his team-mate Atsushi Watanabe came home in 13th position. The 50-minute qualifying session started off in damp conditions but the 2.69-mile Cheshire circuit dried rapidly. Sykes was always in contention for pole position and led the time-sheets for much of the session, showing he has real race-winning pace. Watanabe used his previous experience at Oulton Park to maintain his top 15 placing and will be aiming for a top 10 finish when the racing starts in anger.
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Atsushi Impresses at Oulton
19 July 2008
Rizla Suzuki’s Atsushi Watanabe slashed 3.3secs off his lap time during today’s practice sessions for the seventh round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park in Cheshire, finishing ninth quickest while Tom Sykes was a comfortable sixth. A dry morning session was followed by a damp start to the afternoon practice with the riders waiting in the garage for the picturesque 2.69-mile track to fully dry out. Double Japanese Superbike Champion Atsu was fast and precise in the tricky conditions while Yorkshire ace Tom saved his best to last as he worked through developments to his GSX-R1000.
The single 50-minute qualifying session is at 1400-1450 on Saturday 19th July, with race one at 1315 on Sunday 20th July and race two at 1630. British Eurosport will broadcast live at 1300 - 1430 and 1530 – 1715.
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Harris Sets Pace & Plans To Enjoy an Upset
19 July 2008
Karl Harris dominated free practice ahead of the seventh round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship as it returned to Oulton Park for a second visit of the season. The Rob Mac Racing Yamaha rider was fastest in each of the two sessions, running with a best time of 1m 36.716secs, an average speed of 100.20mph around the 2.692 mile Cheshire circuit, as he outpaced the leading duo in the title chase by a little over a tenth of a second.
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Rizla Suzuki Ready for Oulton’s Cheshire Challenge
14 July 2008
Rizla Suzuki's Tom Sykes and Atsushi Watanabe are refreshed and ready to race at Oulton Park at round seven of the Bennetts British Superbikes, on the 20th July, following a three week break in the calendar. The demanding 2.692 mile track is a favourite of Tom’s and he will be tackling it head on to try and secure his maiden BSB win. He has recharged his batteries during the break and is planning on coming back with all guns blazing.
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Fantastic Fourths for Sykes
01 July 2008
Rizla Suzuki's Tom Sykes took two hard-earned fourth place finishes at the sixth round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Mallory Park in Leicestershire today. Starting from pole position in the opening dry race, Sykes made a steady start, falling back to fifth on the opening lap before battling back up the field. He was always in contention for the victory and set the fastest lap of the race at the 1.41-mile Mallory Park circuit on his way to fourth place. In the second race with the track soaking wet but the sun shining, Tom opted for an intermediate front tyre and slick rear. He got the hole-shot but dropped back to ninth before the track dried enough to take advantage of his grippy Pirelli. He scythed through the field as the sun shone and was fourth again.
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Sykes Competing at the Sharp End
28 June 2008
Tom Sykes put his Rizla Suzuki into the number one spot during second free practice at a damp Mallory Park today, ahead of round six of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship. The first free practice session was in full dry conditions and Sykes completed that in a strong third place, while Honda’s Cal Crutchlow set the fastest time. The difficult conditions in the afternoon reduced the lap times but should it rain on race day, the wet weather preparation will stand by the Huddersfield rider.
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Sykes Fired Up for Mallory Park
26 June 2008
Tom Sykes and his Rizla Suzuki team are ready to take on the challenging Mallory Park circuit this weekend for round six of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship. Following on from his podium success at Snetterton, where he secured a hard fought third place, Sykes is determined to go for more podium glory and that as yet elusive win. The intricate Mallory Park circuit is one that he knows particularly well and he believes he can run at the front.
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Sykes Superb Second in Free Practice
14 June 2008
Rizla Suzuki's Tom Sykes set the second fastest lap time during free practice for round five of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, at the high-speed Snetterton circuit in Norfolk. Sykes ran at the front during both the 50-minute free practice sessions putting in consistent laps as he got dialled into the fast 1.952 mile circuit. His powerful Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000 is perfectly matched to the historic airfield track that boasts two long straights and top speeds of around 200mph. Combined with an agile chassis, Sykes feels he has a winning package. Rizla Suzuki’s Atsushi Watanabe, who has just returned from podium success at the Suzuka 300Km race in Japan, also had a productive day on track. This is the first time that he has ridden at Snetterton so he spent his first session familiarising himself with the track before setting about dropping his lap times. He completed second free practice in 15th place but intends to improve on that tomorrow. Honda’s Leon Haslam set the quickest time today.
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Rizla Suzuki Plays to its Strengths
11 June 2008
Tom Sykes is determined to score a race win aboard his Rizla Suzuki this coming weekend at Snetterton – a high-speed circuit that will suit his super-fast GSX-R1000 - at round five of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship. Following a two week break in the race calendar, Sykes is refreshed and ready to claim his maiden Superbike win. He has shown his winning potential and believes now is the time to make it happen at a circuit where outright power and top speed are required to make fast lap times and both of which are real strengths of the Crescent prepared Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000. Atsushi Watanabe has had no time to relax as he returned to Japan to take part in the Suzuka 300K race, where he and his team-mate finished in third place. He hasn’t had any track time on a bike at Snetterton, so he will spend free practice getting himself and his Rizla Suzuki dialled into the straight forward circuit.
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Well-Earned Third Place Finish for Sykes
27 May 2008
Tom Sykes pulled off a spectacular third place podium finish for Rizla Suzuki after starting from 13th on the grid at round four of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Donington Park. The Huddersfield rider got off the line well and immediately slotted into sixth place in the blustery conditions at the 2.5 miles GP circuit. He rode hard putting in consistently fast lap times and picking off other riders to achieve his second podium finish of the year. In race two he finished in a close sixth place after being baulked by slower riders early on.
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Difficult Wet Qualifying for Rizla Suzuki
26 May 2008
Tom Sykes and Atsushi Watanabe both finished in uncharacteristic positions today following a tough wet session on track at Donington Park, ahead of round four of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, with Sykes 13th and Watanabe 22nd. The wet weather arrived just in time for the singular 50-minute qualifying session following a dry free practice this morning, where Sykes was running in an encouraging second place.
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Sykes on the Pace at Donington Park
25 May 2008
Tom Sykes and Atsushi Watanabe along with their Rizla Suzuki technicians spent the two 50-minute free practice sessions today at Donington Park, dialling in both their GSX-R1000s ahead of round four of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship. Sykes, who favours the 2.5 mile GP circuit, worked on perfecting his already excellent handling Rizla Suzuki chassis, reducing his lap times to 1min 32.718secs just 0.566secs off Leon Haslam who put in the fastest time of 1min 32.152secs.
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Sykes Targets Maiden Win at Donington Park
23 May 2008
Rizla Suzuki’s Tom Sykes battled his way to a superb second place finish last time out at Brands Hatch but he is hoping to go one better at his favourite UK circuit, Donington Park, on Bank Holiday Monday 26th May. The 2.5 mile Grand Prix circuit in Derbyshire will be the location for round four of the hotly contested Bennetts British Superbike Championship. Sykes has been on fast form and running at the front and is now hoping to translate that into his first win of the year for his Rizla Suzuki team.
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Superb Second Place for Sykes & Rizla Suzuki
12 May 2008
Tom Sykes scored a well deserved podium second place today for Rizla Suzuki during the Brands Hatch GP round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship. In the opening race, starting from fourth place on the front row of the grid at the 2.3-mile long Kent circuit, Tom battled with Ducati’s Shane Byrne, eventually finishing a close runner-up. He was in second position again in race two with only a handful of laps to go, when he crashed out unscathed due to a mechanical issue. The race was won by Cal Crutchlow.
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Fine Tuning Benefits Rizla Suzuki at Brands
11 May 2008
Tom Sykes and Atsushi Watanabe used today’s additional free practice time, at the rescheduled Brands Hatch GP round, to work on fine tuning their Rizla Suzuki's giving them a competitive set-up ahead of tomorrow’s Bennetts British Superbike Championship double header. Soaring temperatures at the 2.3 mile Kent circuit allowed Rizla Suzuki’s racers to make the most of the two 30-minute free practice sessions. Sykes finished in fifth place, steadily working through changes on both his Rizla Suzuki race bikes. Watanabe came home in 18th on his return to the challenging track.
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