Ian Hutchinson’s second place in the National 1000cc Superstock class was the pick of the results for Tyco BMW on Sunday, during round seven of the BSB Championship on the Brands Hatch GP circuit.
Hutchinson struggled to get his Tyco BMW S1000RR off the line, but recovered well to fight back from the lower end of the top ten, eventually finishing in a strong second place. The 14-time Isle of Man TT winner also took the fastest lap of the race.
His team-mate Josh Elliott also struggled off the line from his front row grid position and like Hutchinson, fought back bravely to eventually finish in fifth place. Hutchinson remains second in the championship standings, 28 points off the series lead with four rounds remaining. Josh Elliott is fourth, 31 points behind his team-mate.
Ian Hutchinson: “I thought the dash was showing a fault code at the end of the warm-up lap, which I later realised was not the case, and hurriedly re-set the dash. That caused me to lose concentration momentarily and I didn’t make the start I needed to challenge for the win from the opening laps. I worked my way back through the pack, but once I got past Rutter it was a big ask to catch Taylor [Mackenzie], but we did our best and also set the fastest lap. Brands GP is a tough circuit to master with corners where the front and rear are sliding together – you have to be really committed – but the Tyco BMW worked well and we are now well set up for the Ulster Grand Prix this week.”
Josh Elliott: “The clutch seemed to grab and I had to go again and lost the chance of a good start. That’s the annoying bit, as I know I had the pace to challenge for the win and we will now have to wait until Cadwell Park to try and get that win on the board. Apart from that the Tyco BMW did its job, and as I say, I’m just frustrated how things turned out after a pretty good weekend.”
In the British Superbike class, Michael Laverty and Christian Iddon struggled to find the form that saw Tyco BMW on the top step at Thruxton in race two just a fortnight ago. Laverty retired from race two with a mechanical issue, so had to settle for just two points for his weekend’s efforts in race one. He remains fourth in the championship standings.
Iddon took ninth and tenth placed finishes from the two outings and is now ninth in the BSB Championship standings, but more importantly, just five points outside the all-important top six.
Michael Laverty: “That was a weekend to forget. I honestly couldn’t quite understand why we were struggling for pace throughout. I always ride by myself in qualifying and didn’t identify our problem until I got in amongst the pack in race one. Unfortunately we didn’t have time to rectify the problem between races. It’s frustrating to miss out on the points but also a relief to get some answers, as we haven’t struggled for pace at any time this year, so it was quite disconcerting. I am certain we will regroup and bounce back at Cadwell Park.”
Christian Iddon: “It was a difficult day for us as we so nearly had the pace, but in reality were a couple of tenths shy. I gave my all and so did the team, so these are quite difficult results to take. Looking at the bigger picture, there is only a fifteen point gap to fourth place, so we are still well in the mix.”
Philip Neill – Team Manager: “After the joy of success at Thruxton, this was a very frustrating weekend for us overall. Ian road a really strong race in Superstock 1000 and with a better start, his lap times indicate he may well have challenged for the victory. It’s another podium on the S1000RR and another BMW 1-2 is pleasing. After a good qualifying Josh had a bad start and struggled during the early laps, leaving him just out of reach of the podium places at the finish.
Our Superbike weekend was one to forget. We just could not seem to find an ideal set up for Michael and Christian. We have enjoyed success this year with both riders and we will regroup and hope to see them back at the front at the next round. Thanks as always to BMW, Tyco Security Products and all our partners.”
Next up for Tyco BMW is the Ulster Grand Prix at Dundrod in Northern Ireland this week with Ian Hutchinson. Practice and qualifying take place on Wednesday and Thursday. The Dundrod 150 Superbike race takes place on Thursday, followed by a full Ulster Grand Prix race programme on Saturday August 13.