2011 HOTTRAX MOTORSPORT Racing Club National 600 + 1000, Junior 600 + 1000, Michelin Power Cup and MotoGrande Championships – words and pictures by Alfonso Lygo

2011 Season Resume by class

Overall

A bit like good wine, Hottrax Motorsport improves with every season and 2011 was the best so far with full grids, close racing and nail biting stuff spanning the opening round at Brands in March to the season’s close in Norfolk over the last weekend of October. The HMRC cohort also visited Anglesey and Pembrey in Wales, Mallory, firm favourite Cadwell and riders choice Oulton park plus no less than two trips to the redeveloped Snetterton, albeit on different circuit configurations. Typical of the UK, we enjoyed the whole spectrum of weather and this played a factor in the racing.

National 600

Lewis Mason

Robbie Moore

Ady Allsopp
Last season two teams finished level on points with Pit Stop Racing ‘out winning’ Louth Bikes National to take the championship at the Cadwell finale as the light was failing in October. Pit Stop were back to retain their title whilst Louth Bikes took a breather, coming to the opening round at Brands were a whole raft of new and established teams and a brand new format of a 40 minute Superpole race on Saturday afternoon which would determine the grid for the three hour encounter as well as earning points towards the championship chase,

As Pit Stop (Marc/Peter Dilks) was left flaying on the starting grid with a dud battery allowing new kids on the block M & M Racing (Lewis Mason/Robbie Moore) to make a useful break at the start of the race. Ducks Cross Racing (Martin Landmann/Mike Eglington) were the only ones to start of full drys and very soon we had two 600s leading the race overall. When it mattered most, those mercurial M & Ms took the overall race and class win with two laps in hand over Ducks X with Pit Stop a further lap down in a well earned third spot. The top six were rounded off by the evergreen Dales Racing (Richie Cunningham/Richard Steadman), 1491 (Andy Pulling/Ian Cooper) and RAF liveried Roundall Racing (Simon Allen/Al Waring).

At Mallory in April it was another M & M race perfect display, whilst not winning on the road they were only a lap down on the big boys in third spot and after two hours of racing were just over a second up from the pursuing Pit Stop prior to Mark Affleck binning it at Shaws Hairpin with cold tyres. M & M were rewarded with 25 points as they finished 6 laps ahead of 1491 with Handbags & Shoes (Emmett Burke/Richie Cunningham) in a handy third. In their wake was; Spark Endurance (Shelley Pike/Rob Knoyle), garage mates and final race starter Roundall with Pit Stop picking up a much appreciated sixth in class.

Our visit to Anglesey was blighted by wind, rain and more wind – that didn’t stop M & M from getting a flyer of a start and were out on their own for much of the early stages as title rivals Pit Stop paid heavily for bad tyre choice which held them up and cost them the win at the end as they were a mere six seconds out of touch with M & M making it a hat trick of National 600 wins on the trot – couldn’t have done better! Pit Stop was OK with the runner up spot as it keeps them in with a shout with less than half the season gone. Ducks X were in a healthy third spot after Martin Landmann bombed out on the start/finish straight, albeit finishing 9 laps down but ahead of usual suspects Spark and Roundall. 1491 did not complete enough distance after running out of fuel during the race.

At the new Snetterton 300 track the heavens opened just as the field set off on their warm up lap, all endurance races are declared as ‘wet’ before the start. M & M did their usual thing of clearing off into the distance and with an hour gone they were battling on the road with Junior 1000 crew Derek Redmond 4 (Neil Garnham/Tony Rogers). For the last hour it was Dales Racing (Richard Steadman/Freddie Pett) who was outpacing M & M into P1 by under 2 seconds with old adversaries Pit Stop in third on the same lap down, so not miles away. Triumph mounted Handbags & Shoes finished fourth ahead of DucksX, Spark and Roundall – the later two seeming well matched in terms of pace and strategy.

Back to Wales for the second time this year and unusually M & M were struggling with set up in the wet whereas new Ducks X paring which included Michelin Power Cup 600 top man Grant Wagstaff were looking hot. DucksX led after the first round of pit stops with 1491 a bit behind, after a couple of pace car appearances they were third on the road and mixing it with the big boys before the R6 stopped out on circuit, Pit Stop worked their way up to the front as the race entered the closing stages and M & M were on a real push but unable to get within a couple of laps of first place, 1491 had done enough to finish ahead of that well known double act of Spark and Roundall.

Cadwell Park attracted some entries who used the endurance race as ‘value for money’ testing for the following week’s BSB races, nonetheless Freddy’s’ (Freddie Russo/Freddie Pett) were beasting the field pulling out a substantial lead before being overtaken on the road by big brothers National 1000 Sweatshop and BLDS. PS Racing (Atkinson/Steph Waddelow), M & M, Handbags and Pit Stop were all chasing and in with a shout as the race entered its final 30%, Freddy’s were taken out of the equation and the brace of Triumph 675s of PS racing took the class win holding a lap over M & M who enjoyed a similar advantage over Pit Stop after Handbags went missing. 1491 did well to finish in front of seasoned campaigners Tango & Crash (Ryans Myler and Peters), Zimsa Racing (Chris Cahoon/Thompson) and DucksX (Eglington/Russ Horton).

Oulton may be a circuit where 600s loose out to the litre machines but this was going to go down to the wire as leaders of the pack went head to head with those wily Pit Stop Racing boys. With no Superpole race M & M were on the money in qualifying only being done by National 1000s Sweatshop and Uprite; however Pit Stop were right up their exhaust pipes on the grid and hungry. All went Pete Tong in the opening hour for Robbie Moore as he tossed the 600 into the air and inherited a load of broken bones for his trouble. The heroic Mason rode alone but with compulsory rest periods he loitered around at the back. Messers Affleck and Dilks at Pit Stop made hay and were never heeded to finish a lap up on 1491, Roundall were a distant third.

Moore’s injuries precluded him from being part of the riding team for the final round, so off the subs bench came Nottingham Imp Ady Allsopp, after a generous Peter Dilks had offered to deputise. Apart from a ‘wild card’ appearance from Seton Tuning (Phil Seton/Sam Warren) who mixed it with the thousands during the 40 minute Superpole, M & M were on top of their game finishing a lap up on 1491, Ducks Cross and Pit Stop. The following day in the big race it was not important where M & M were in relation to Seton but how they were doing against Pit Stop. Last year’s champs had a rock face to climb and that all came to an abrupt end when a two quid component failed after 33 laps causing an eventual retirement and M & M could call themselves worthy 2011 Champions. For the record Seton went on to finish fourth overall but first in the National 600s a full six laps in front of M & M, Ducks X were a mere lap away with 1491 another two adrift, other finishes at the last race of the season were Spark Endurance who should be pleased with the result.

M & M Racing (Lewis Mason/Robbie Moore/Ady Allsopp) were crowned champs at Snetterton whilst the runners up, Pit Stop Racing (Marc + Peter Dilks/Mark Affleck) experienced a rare mechanical failure.

2011 Championship Results

1 M & M Racing 176 points

2 Pit Stop racing 142

3 1491 Endurance 101

4 Ducks Cross Racing 86

5 Spark Endurance 82

6 Roundall Racing 68

7 Dales Racing 40

8 Handbags & Shoes 31

9 Seton Tuning 30

10 PS Racing 25

National 1000

Mick Godfrey

Hugh Brasher

Mike Dickinson

Mark Smith Halvorsen
The big 1000cc machines were always going to be a bit of a handful around the Brands Hatch Indy circuit and in the wet this was even more evident. Splitlath Racing (Hudson Kennaugh/Jenny Tinmouth) was fastest in qualifying, won the Superpole dash and started the 3 hour race from pole. All was good for Kennaugh before pitting early to change rubber and dropping out of the top twenty overall. In the early stages the leading National 1000 crew were brothers Lee and Matt Rawlings on an R1 and R6 with BLDS (Jonty Dixon/Bill Lilly) nowhere and Sweatshop (Hugh Brasher/Mick Godfrey) in 17th on the road. Towards the closing stages of the race it all got a bit messy with a Junior Aprilia bringing out pace car for a while before leading National rider Jenny Tinmouth slipped passed the M & M 600 to take the lead and class......just before falling off introducing the pace car for a second occasion but still being able to recover the transponder for Hudson Kennaugh to continue and take the class win ahead of Rawlings, BLDS, Sweatshop and Insignia (Einar Torlen/Rob Loveday).

How would the big bikes do at Mallory? It was Sweatshop (Mick Godfrey/Mark Smith Halvorsen) who took four laps to overhaul the agile 600s to get to the front before being bettered by TANC Racing (Chris Mason/Jon Otter) at the sharp end. At half distance BLDS were leading due to expert piloting of Jonty Dixon with TANC and Sweatshop unable to keep up. In the final third of the race, Sweatshop’s ZX10 picked up a misfire and were second to TANC who were motoring well but only 11 seconds ahead. It was all about pit stops with 45 minutes to go, Sweatshop grabbed the lead when TANC headed for the pit lane but Smith-Halvorsen was struggling to stay aboard a difficult to control bike to take the flag only 12 seconds ahead of TANC, BLDS were rewarded with a third spot in front of Council racing (Danny Lister/? Halliday) with Insignia in fifth and the Rawlings brothers completing the top six.

Anglesey was to be the swansong for 2010 Champions TM72 before team principal Andy McKnight relocated to the other side of the world. Using his title winning Suzuki, Andy was partnered by Steve Neate on his Le Mans competing R1 as Jonty Dixon had migrated over to BLDS for a full season of endurance racing. At the drop it was Sweatshop (Mick Godfrey/Mike Dickinson) who made the best start chased by BLDS with TM72 some way behind, by one third distance Sweatshop were gapping TM72 by only 17 seconds. Godfrey had to stop out on the circuit to fiddle with the Kawasaki’s traction control gismo allowing Neate to push his R1 into a substantial leading position. Teams needed to be master tacticians as the pace car emerged for around twenty minutes and Sweatshop were beginning to hunt TM72 down and building up a one lap lead over the Throttlemonkeys as Dixon dumped his BLDS down at the Corkscrew. In the last 30 minutes TM72 were now a lap in front of Sweatshop but the ZX10 riders rode like heroes to unlap themselves to finish just over a minute down on TM72 with Insignia in third. Fourth were Half a Chance (Andy Carpenter/Martin Townsend) with BLDS only 10 seconds adrift and TANC and Rawlings a few laps down on the leaders.

The crew arrived at the new Snetterton 300 with little or no circuit knowledge so it was newbies Simply Black and White (David Brooking/James McBride) who made the most of a wet weather race start to secure the lead, with Sweatshop starting in 15th and dumping the Kwak at the back of the circuit. With 60 minutes under their belts TANC (Chris Mason/Peter Baker) were the leading Nation 1000 team with Black & White bumped down to 23rd and Sweatshop 39th overall, at half distance BLDS (Bill Lilly/Jon Otter) were suffering from a slipping clutch and Ridgeback (Clark/Stolliday) were now reported to be in the top ten. TANC had done enough to secure their first class win of the season with a lap’s grace over Black & White, BLDS and Ridgeback were separated by 40 seconds with Insignia, Gosh, Rawlings, Sweatshop and Black Flag all some way down in a weather affected race of attrition.

Back to Wales and Sweatshop (Mick Godfrey/Hugh Brasher), BLDS (Jonty Dixon/Craig Fitzpatrick) and TANC (Chris Mason/James McBride) had all cracked the 60s lap and the beginning of the race was short circuit stuff, such was the race pace that Fitz was off coming onto the start/finish straight triggering a pace car period for 20 minutes. At half distance Sweatshop were a lap ahead of TANC which was maintained until a push in the final hour when TANC managed to unlap themselves but had left it too late to do anything to change the result. Insignia had a solid ride to finish in third ahead of Moriarty & Peace (Moriarty/Peace), whilst an ever optimistic Jonty Dixon was unable to complete the 75% of race winner’s distance to earn some much needed points towards the season’s haul.

Cadwell attracted a quality entry as it was the weekend prior to BSB so it was agreed ‘guest’ teams would be unable to earn positions and points. BLDS Couriers (Jonty Dixon/Byron Beckett) made the top three with other BSB outfit GB Moto (Pete Jennings/Ace Endurance man Alex Cudlin, very quickly it was GB Moto, BLDS, Splitlath from Sweatshop (Hugh Brasher/Mick Godfrey) with TANC (Chris Mason/Jon Otter) picking up an early stop/go penalty for a technical infringement. Harris briefly led before the Italian twin cried enough allowing BLDS to lead Sweatshop by ten seconds with an hour to go, a recovering Splitlath were in third ahead of TANC who pitted with a boiling Suzuki in the hands of Otter. Remove the wildcard entries and Sweatshop won their class with a dominant performance over BLDS a couple of laps down, it was great to see the ever improving Ridgeback (Clark/Stolliday) take third only 9 seconds ahead of Insignia (Parkin/TBA) with Council Racing (Lister/Halliday) and TANC making up the top six.

Sweatshop was back with Godfrey and Dickinson and new for Oulton and Dicko was coming off the back of tying up the Michelin Power Cup 1000 division in tricky riding conditions that reflected the weekend, Godfrey being a recent Manx Grand Prix hero on the Alfs Motorcycles Harris Kawasaki. TSL Timing sheets show; Sweatshop were fastest in qualifying, leading the race and class at the 1, 2 and 3 hour mark, a perfect performance being rewarded by the 2011 National 1000 title for the very experienced endurance motorcycling crew. Making a one off come back after a couple of years away was former high flyers Uprite Racing, now guided by Triff Stevens, backed up by Max Sholl, the big Suzook ably peddled by Damian ‘Demon’ Rowley and John Crockford who crept over the line less than a second from TANC (Mason/James McBride), Ridgeback in a handy third some 30 seconds ahead of BLDS’s Jonty Dixon, now back with team principal Bill Lilly.

With the title settled we went into Snetterton looking to settle the runners up spot from TANC, BLDS and Insignia. At the start of practice BLDS and Insignia were no shows and there was a raft of visiting teams with a rich pedigree; the Neate brothers (Sam + Steve), GB Moto (Mark Smith Halvorsen/Tristan Palmer) and Road & Racing Performance (Luke Stapleford/Danny Kinloch) plus known faces Flex Net (Andy Rouse/Colin Norris), Sweatshop and TANC (Chris Mason/Mike Dickinson) as well as well as Half a Chance (Andy carpenter/Jonty Dixon). The Superpole was a real thrash and R & R came out on top of the Neate family R1 by a scant 0.7 seconds, in third were GB Moto a hairs breath (0.085s) up the road from the quickest 600 around in the hands of Seton with Sweatshop and TANC on the same tour.

At one third distance Neates were a lap clear of R & R, TANC and GB Moto, Flex Net and Half a Chance were 5th and 6th in class whilst Sweatshop were 21st on the road after running out of puff along the Norwich Straight. One hour later and R & R had dropped down to fourth behind Neates, GB Moto and TANC – Half a Chance had leap frogged over Flex Net and Sweatties were seventh in class and 15th on the track. As the light began to fail and some track marshals were reporting light rain The Neate Brothers won the race and their class by a single lap from R & R with GB Moto a similar distance away, Half a Chance and Flex Net crossed the line less than 30 seconds apart whilst Sweatshop finished sixth in class one place better that TANC who plummeted out of third spot with gremlins hitting Chris Mason’s Yamaha in the dying moments of the race.

2011 Championship Results

1 Sweatshop Racing 170 points

2 TANC Racing 118

3 BLDS Couriers 97

4 Insignia 89

5 Rawlings Racing 45

6 Ridgeback Racing 42

7 TM72 30

8= Half a Chance Racing 28

8= Neate Brothers 28

10 Council Racing 26

11 Road & Racing 25

11= Splitlath Motorsport 25

Junior 600

Martin + Peter Brand
600 Juniors is the perfect starting point for riders launching a racing career and Brand Brothers Racing were a fine example of that. With little more than a couple of track days under their belt, Hottrax Motorsport was their first serious assault on the world of motorcycle racing, turning up to Brands with a pair of turquoise R6’s they were bound to create an impression. After one third of the race distance BBR were hanging onto the coat tails of race leaders, National 600 runners M & M and despite changes in weather, track conditions and pace car interruptions they managed to keep in formation to secure that all important race win as well as being second on the roads only a lap down on the leaders. BBR had a chasm between them and the next team who were the very professional and experienced Initiatec JR Racing crew of John Burr and Harte whose cop car lookalike 600s enjoyed a single lap cushion over newcomers TDM Racing (Michael and Terry Merritt), in front of father and son combo; Brad and Jase Bradlaw (J & B Racing). During the race we lost Team RAF Wittering (Maria Costello/Tim McGivern) and series sponsor Sorrymate.com (Fergus Dalgarno/Richard Dilks).

It was a slightly different tale at Mallory for Round 2 where Sorrymate.com (Richard Dilks/Colin Morris) meant business and where the first 600 Junior 600 on the roads in the opening phase of the race, albeit being shadowed closely by the Brand Brothers. Once the pace car had evaporated from the action Sorrymate still found themselves leading their class only a lap down on the front running Junior 1000 machines. The white and red machines retained that advantage until the end where the gap over runners up BBR was a mere 13 seconds, Completing the J600 leader board were J & B Racing father and son combo – Brad and Jason Bradlaw.

In the wild and woolly sweeps of Anglesey Initiatec’s John Burr kissed the tarmac briefly costing time and places and fellow Junior 600s Roofix (Smith/Wythe) crashed bring out the pace car to shake things up a bit as well as loosing track time. At the end of the 180 minutes Peter & Martin Brand took the top step of the podium, runners up to BBR were TDM Racing only a lap down with the next three crews all on the same lap and separated by 11 seconds; Sorrymate.com (Richard Dilks/Fergus Dalgarno) and the ever enthusiastic Apex Racing (Nick Matthews/Adam Woby).

For our wet visit to Snetterton it was the mixed weather conditions that allowed BBR to infiltrate the leading pack and make a race of it with bikes from other classes being seventh on the road in the early stages and moving up to fifth at around mid distance. At the end of the day BBR finished top in their class and 9th overall displacing many of the bigger teams sporting litre machines, Initiatec (Mark Roxborough/John Burr) were runners up by no less that 3 laps ahead of J & B Racing (Brad and Jason Bradlaw) - what more appropriate way of celebrating Father’s Day – giving them both a day to remember.Sorrymate.com (Dalgarno/Dilks) were the only other Junior 600 finishes with TDM, RAF Wittering and Apex all falling off the perch.

Riding the smaller machines might have held an advantage at Pembrey; Brand Brothers were tenth overall in Saturday’s Superpole as well as top Junior 600 outfit and top Rookies. At 1500hrs the following day Peter was stone last off the grid unable to coax life into the R6, however after the first hour BBR were comfortably within the top ten and leading their class. Torrential rain had an effect on the final hour of proceedings but this did not stop BBR from nailing another win with a maximum haul of points and a sixth place overall to finish a lap ahead of nearest and dearest TDM (Merritt x 2) with J & B grabbing another bronze spot for their trouble. Sorrymate were fourth with RAF Wittering getting a finish and fifth spot; Initiatec and Apex did not!

600s also came into their own in Lincolnshire in August, with no Superpole and two of our regulars starting the race from pit lane; Initiatec’s John Burr and Sorrymate.com’s Richard Dilks. In a packed grid, BBR were down in 20th after 1 hour, 16th after 2 and at the end they posted a class win and 13th on the road from 24 finishes. This massive effort earned the two brothers and their team of helpers and supporters the 2011 Junior 600 title, the first to be wrapped up this season. For the record Apex Racing (Glen Levy/Nick Matthews) were the only other J6 finishes three laps away and five places on the road – still a good result for a well ordered team who are having a mare of a season, non finishers were Initiatec and Sorrymate.

For the one day Oulton thrash, despite a rubbish qualifying performance, crowned Junior 600 champs, Brand Brothers were untouchable for the first couple of hours where they were second on the road to Sweatshop before a crash which dumped them down to 12thy on the road but still ahead of their pushy classmates. At the end BBR, Initiatec and Sorrymate.com were all covered by 74 seconds after 180 minutes of action, leaving the cop liveried team and the championship sponsors both capable of nicking second spot in the tables.

In deepest Norfolk with no pressure BBR had their worst race of the season, after no less than six wins and a second the brothers could only muster a humble fifth finishing the final classified finisher on the road. A team absolutely chuffed with their performance were cop look a likes Initiatec who took the top step in the Junior 600s, an especially good race for Mark Roxbrough who was bouncing back from his Cadwell smash and a team DNF. Two laps away were Sorrymate.com who was a slim 56 seconds up on Apex who had their best finish of what has been a difficult season for the well organised crew. Sorrymate guaranteed third spot in the table behind Initiatec and in front of non attendees J & B Racing with Apex vaulting over TDM for joint fifth. RAF Witteringham was confirmed in seventh from three races.

2011 Championship Results

1 Brand Brothers Racing 206 points

2 Initiatec JR Racing 125

3 Sorrymate.com 109

4= J & B Racing 68

4= Apex Racing 68

6 TDM Racing 61

7 RAF Witteringham 24

Junior 1000

Neil Garnham

Tony Rogers
Fun and games would be guaranteed in the largest class within the Endurance Racing fraternity; Visorvision Team Traction Control (Paul Berryman/Keith Flint) and Blujets Racing (Carl Hodgkins/Ash Rothwell) made an impact in qualifying for the first Superpole of the season which earned them good starting positions for the big race. By lap 10 Redmond Raptor 4 (Neil Garnham/Tony Rogers) were up to third on the road with GT Racing (Brad Patras/Keith Tribe) and Blujets also in the top 6. After an hour it was Sherwood Motorcycles (Carl Dodwell/Mark Hornett) to be the top Junior 1000 bike in the top three on the road. Following dramas in the last hour which saw Berryman taking to the scenery, Sherwood took the first win of the season with a 7 second lead over Banzai (Dalton/Thompson), Keith Flint steered Visorvision into third spot ahead of Blujets, DR4 and We Know No Limits (Sherriff/Cornell).

When the big machines rolled into Mallory for Round Two it was Banzai and Blujets (Ash Rothwell/Carl Hodgkins) who made the most of their grid positions on Sunday afternoon, unfortunately Rothwell ejected at the hairpin leaving Banzai, Sherwood and In the Doghouse (Arron Bird/Paul Janes) to race for places. After the second pace car appearance Banzai still ruled the roost to take the class win with a terrific fifth on the road, Sherwood were only a lap adrift and Doghouse were third. Making up the top six were Redmond Raptor 4 (in respect to the death of Steve 'Raptorman' Wilson), Extreme Wraps (Loveday/Saunders) and Roofix (Smith/Whyte).

Going into North Wales and the Superpole race it was adding dong between Blujets and DR4 who were separated by a scant 0.7 seconds after the 40 minute thrash to determine the grid positions for the Le Mans start. The Derek Redmond 4 team had enough speed to be challenging for a top three place on the road along with a class win and held a twenty something second lead over Eric Chitty’s Blujets after an hour, this evaporated down to 11 seconds at the two thirds mark with Blujets stealing the win by a lap plus by the end of the thrash. Banzai and Sherwood were both a similar gap down on the team in front, followed home by Racing Snakes (Graham Bennett/Ian Charles) and a brace of Derek Redmond runners – DR 200 and DR400.

Banzai had a storm at Snetterton shadowing both Blujets and DR4 in Saturday afternoon’s Superpole – could they replicate that 24 hours later? No. At the end of the first hour DR4 led their class as well as the race overall with some fantastic lap times from both Tony Rogers and ‘raising his game race by race’ Neil Garnham. After two hours DR4 were still very much at the sharp end and nearest class rivals were Banzai a single lap adrift, Blujets were a few seconds behind in third spot. When it really mattered Derek Redmond 4 could not have done better; leaders on the road and of their class as well as fastest lap in class. Always a pleasure to see real effort rewarded in the form of Banzai grabbing second spot on the same lap as the leaders. The well run Blujets were in a close third less than two seconds ahead of Visorvision Team Traction Control (Berryman/Flint) – Extreme Wraps and Sherwood bought up the rear.

DR4 excelled in the Pembrey Superpole and in the big race they led their class at all stages as well as rising up the race order from fifth up to fourth by the end. There was a following trio, all capable of putting pressure on the leaders throughout the race; Visorvision, Blujets and Banzai who ran only seconds apart well into the third hour when Blujets leap frogged Visorvision into second spot by a mere 3.7 seconds, Banzai were a safe fourth from DR200 (Jonathon Garnett/Andy Dix).

No time for a Superpole in Lincolnshire, Visorvision were top Junior 1000 team on the grid a couple of places ahead of DR4, that said Visorvision had a mare in the race dropping outside the top thirty overall. At the other end of the scale it was that familiar trio of DR4, Blujets and Banzai who were circulating seconds apart in the first third of the race, with an hour left on the clock DR4 were a lap in front of Banzai with Blujets only 14 seconds adrift. In a race where there were only 24 classified finishers from 35 starters; in the biggest class of the field it was a resounding win for DR4 with a lap in hand over Blujets who were 1.3s ahead of Banzai with Extreme Wraps (Loveday/Pearce) in a well nailed fourth.

In the penultimate round in Cheshire, Visorvision (Keith Flint/Ben Neeves) were looking brilliant in qualifying whilst DR4’s Tony Rogers planted their entry somewhere near the back, with Blujets rock bottom. Visorvision capitalised and were class leaders early on with Banzai, DR4 and Blujets dialling themselves in to make a race of it all on the same lap a single tour down on the leaders. Fast Forward one hour and Banzai’s Rupert Thompson had crashed out leaving DR4 and Blujets to trail Visorvision by that single lap. The class leaders produced a massive push in the last sixty minutes to finish fourth on the road still with a single lap cushion over DR4 and Blujets who were separated by a slender nine seconds. It was great to see Old and Bold (Burbage/Main) in a spritely fourth ahead of DR400 and bezzie mates DR200.

It was going to be difficult for DR4 not to tie up the championship from Blujets who would be pushing and Blujets could be caught by Banzai plus Visorvision are up for that elusive win so much deserved. Not only were DR4 looking convincing for the class win but they were also tapping on the door of a top six, eventually crossing the line in fifth place – the top four being visiting wildcard racers, a mega result for a shockingly quick Rogers, new to road racing and his much improved team mate Neil Garnham who stunned himself with what he has achieved in 2011.

2011 Championship Results

1 Derek Redmond 4 179 points

2 Blujets Racing 146

3 Banzai Racing 141

4 Visorvision Team Traction Control 89

5 Derek Redmond 200 73

6 Sherwood Motorcycles 70

7 Extreme Wraps 35

8 Old and Bold Racing 34

9 Roofix Racing 26

10 Derek Redmond 400 20

11 Baby TANC 19

12 In the Dog House 18

MotoGrande 1000

Julian Hughes
GSXR mounted Julian Hughes made a cautious start in his 2011 MotoGrande campaign at Brands Hatch back in March but really launched himself off the back of a couple of second places at Mallory which saw him nail 7 wins from nine races in the middle of the season. This made it easier to cope with a dreadful penultimate round at Oulton where only a single racing slap was completed over the whole weekend. Hughes was shadowed all the while by a hard trying Ash Daughtrey who often looked as if he was going to pull off a series of wins but had to be content with a single visit to the top step at Snetterton, Ash’s WMD was that of consistency which saw him drag points down in all races, a real gift in such in competitive environment.

The next two down were proven race winners but were also racing elsewhere so missed out; Mallory specialist Phil Brooks did half a season and grabbed wins and runners up spots before struggling at Cadwell in August giving him third spot in the championship on his R1. Fourth man Rhalf Lo Turco only joined MG at Anglesey to give him extra race miles over the weekend – his highlight was a run of four second places on the run which helped his season. The Brazilian was chased home by another Mr Consistent – Adam Reeve who enjoyed a productive season, having a couple of thirds along the way. Stephen Bridle (one place up on 2010) and Andrew Fenton were fairly evenly matched to make seventh and eight all their own but might have been pushed by Kris Sanders whose season was cut short after being deployed elsewhere in the world.

Next along were a clutch of riders who always only intended bombing up to a round to get either track experience of time on the machine. Walking off with wins were Gary Beardsley and local expert Dan Flower whilst featuring on the points table were; Paul Green, Adrian Beevor, Peter Woodall, Michael Elliot, Ross Bates and Peter Baker with two emphatic wins at Snetterton, Justin Stephenson and Raymond Stagg.

2011 Championship Results

1 Julian Hughes 344 points

2 Ash Daughtrey 270

3 Rhalf Lo Turco 218

4 Adam Reeve 212

5 Phil Brooks 205

6 Stephen Bridle 190

7 Andrew Fenton 156

8 Kris Sanders 96

9= Gary Arden 96

9= Gary Beardsley 86

11 Paul Green 75

12 Dan Flower 66

MotoGrande 600

Andrew Nicholson
Andrew Nicholson got better and better as the season progressed to finish up with almost twice as many points as his nearest rival. He was off to a cautious start at the opening two rounds, the third round was a trio of second places and his first win was at Snetterton a month later, a couple more wins followed at different circuits indicating a certain degree of race maturity. Runner up spot for the year went right down to the wire and was chased by the wily Colin Norris (worthy runner up last year to boot), Roger Slater, Warren Verwey and Shaun Champion – the top Rookie showing his hand by not entering Snetterton. Andrew Lund revved up to grab 6th spot ahead of Wayne Crossman and Jake Kay, both of whom showed a seam of talent at the rounds he entered, in front of the ever improving Matt Smith and Nick Matthews. There were a raft of riders entering the series including Sorrymate.com endurance specialist Richard Dilks and multi race winners Ollie Linsdell and Jamie Harrison. Some riders came and conquered to gain valuable seat time and such worthy notables were; and Dave Sellars with two wins and a second plus 2010 Champ Sam Ludgate, Darryl Jones and Paul O’Connor – a win and some seconds.

2011 Championship Results

1 Andrew Nicholson 309 points

2 Colin Norris 183

3 Roger Slater 178

4 Warren Verwey 156

5 Shaun Champion R 148

6 Andrew Lund 127

7= Wayne Crossman 116

7= Jake Kay 116

9 Matt Smith 91

10 Nick Matthews 87

11 Richard Dilks 85

12= Ollie Linsdell 75

12= Jamie Harrison 75

MICHELIN Power Cup – 2011 Resume

1000 MICHELIN Power Cup

Mike Dickinson

South African Mike Dickinson was crowned MPC Champion after he and arch rival Shane Pearson did not finish the opening race at Oulton in the penultimate round. getfaster.co.uk race instructor Mike took a couple of rounds to get used to his new BMW on the all new French rubber before knocking out three wins at Anglesey with Pearson posting three seconds. Up to this stage Derby’s Daz Bellworthy had looked handy before withdrawing from the series to focus on business and James Cox amassed some points at Brands and Mallory before disappearing into the ether. If Mike was the master with 15 wins, Norton worker Pearson was the worthy runner up with no less than 13 runners up trophies, never quite making it onto the top step. Tom Kielty on the green meanie kept harvesting points and won the first race at Oulton in the wet, and he was in with a shout for second in the championship going into the final round at Snetterton where results did not match effort so fourth was as good as it got in 2011.

SBK City’s Rhalf Lo Turco only failed to drag points down on a couple of occasions on his superbly liveried BMW – probably the most colourful team in the paddock – with three second places in the final round, Rhalf was a very deserving third with Kielty a place below. These were the top four in the table and they were closely followed by BMW mounted Gaz Evans who managed a couple of wins and a harvest of points and a crash in the final race of the year. Further down the road were the hard trying Greg Allsop and Andy Rouse who wrestled his Fireblade home on all but two races. The top ten were filled out by Steve Sarson, Stephen Harrison and Toby Simpson and others to feature in this intense battle included; Steve Bentley, Cox, Daz, James Osbourn, Darren Blackwell, Kevin Allen, Pikua and Paul O’Connor.

2011 Championship Results

1 Mike Dickinson 431 points

2 Shane Pearson 276

3 Rhalf Lo Turco 234

4 Tom Kielty 211

5 Gaz Evans 186

6 Greg Allsop 175

7 Andy Rouse 168

8 Steve Sarson 163

9 Stephen Harrison 135

10 Toby Simpson 106

11 Steve Bentley 80

12 James Cox 61

600 MICHELIN Power Cup

Danny Imberg
The 2011 MPC 600 title chase was all about two riders from Bedfordshire; Danny Imberg who has raced classic bikes in the past and Grant Wagstaff who is no slouch at motorcycle endurance racing as well as Taekwondo. Imberg netted four wins on the trot before missing Anglesey, after which he won 13 out of 14 races, his second spot being his only disgrace. All the time Wag was hounding him down but unable to play catch up , with a win and five second places, he missed Cadwell to focus on a brilliant 2nd in the Senior Manx Grand Prix and an undeserved retirement whilst leading the Junior. Lady luck had also ditched him in the final race with a nasty looking off after a couple of second spots. Going into the final three races in Norfolk Nottingham’s Ady Allsopp had seen the light and was in with a sniff for second spot if Wag made any mistakes, despite best endeavours Ady – who is threatening to retire at the end of the season, stayed in third spot.

Another Manx Grand Prix rookie Richard Charlton worked hard at sealing off fourth spot despite a late push from Peter and Marc Dilks who were also in with a shout of the National 600 endurance title. Nick Green and Anthony Park had a useful sort of season with the most amiable Dominic De-Leon scoring points in all the races to land up with 9th at the end of the season – one better than last year. Mark Affleck shuffled in front of Paul Barker; Daniel Ward Clare, Damian Tierney all finished in front of endurance regular Adam Woby who finished the season in the pit lane after an accident at Cadwell in 14th spot.

2011 Championship Results

1 Danny Imberg 445 points

2 Grant Wagstaff 302

3 Adrian Allsopp 266

4 Richard Charlton (R) 257

5 Peter Dilks 214

6 Marc Dilks 207

7 Nick Green 155

8 Anthony Park 142

9 Dominic De-Leon 101

10 Paul Barker 104

11 Mark Affleck 100

12 Paul Barker 96

Ducati Desmo Dues

A massive thank you for the Ducati fraternity for bring a bit of a spectacle to the Hottrax Motorsport paddock, the sight and sound of these Italian exotica made a welcome change from grids generally made up by Japanese four cylinder devices. Whilst this year’s racing was not a structured championship it is clear to see who was head and shoulders above the rest in either machine prep, riding or both.

The Dukes are back with a vengeance in 2012 and have been a breath of fresh air in the Hottrax paddock in their inaugural season with the club. Class A machines are the most rapid and races for them have been dominated by Neil Appleby and Andy Challis, Neil seeing the top step of the podium more than his rival. Some finishes have been close but mostly Appleby has bossed the opposition. Dallas Hornblow has been there or there abouts with three fine thirds as the Class A machines populate the top places in the results. At the Pembrey round it was double class winner Paul Bradbury and David Jenkins to show how to get the most out of a Class B device. There are the Ducati races here for you this weekend so take it easy, get over to the twisty bits of the track and just enjoy the cacophony of Italian noise on offer.

I cannot wait for the sights and sounds of these Italian beauties when they return next season to join some other new classes at the best of British tracks.