Cadwell Park - 2nd/3rd October '10
The duo (driver Steve Kershaw and passenger Rob Wilson) performed well in qualifying putting their BlinkBonny Quarry sponsored outfit on the 3rd row in 6th place overall and more importantly 1st in the Cup. The Lauder pairing headed out for the first race knowing all they had to do was finish 4th or higher in the Cup standings. They rode the wheels of the outfit, battling all race long to take a fantastic 5th place overall and 1st in the Cup; a result which makes the Lauder duo the 2010 British Cup Champions!
The second race on Sunday brought with it rain, lots of it! The Cup Championship may have been in the bag but there was still a fight for position in the overall championship. Kershaw and Wilson made a great start holding 4th place after the first lap. The duo pushed hard and the pace was too hot for the outfit in front; they slid off the track, handing 3rd place to Kershaw and Wilson. The duo were now 4 seconds behind the front two outfits but had pulled a huge 10 second gap on 4th place. They crossed the line for the final championship race in a fantastic 3rd place overall and their second Cup win of the weekend. Kershaw said "We have never won the Cup races at this track before, so to take the championship with a double win is really something!"
The team's final two race positions granted them 5th place in the overall British Championship, missing 4th by only one point and 3rd by a mere six! Kershaw and Wilson said "A top 6 finish was our aim at the start of the year so to finish 5th in Britain is a great achievement. We would like to thank the rest of our team for their support".
The 2010 British Cup Champions would like to thank all of their sponsors and everyone who has made this year possible. They look forward to another exciting season in 2011.
Castle Combe suffers as Croft does from 'neighbour-related issues' and this meeting was the only bike event on their calendar. No problems for 18 of the 20 teams but for Dave Atkinson and Phil Knapton (Garland Family Racing LCR Suzuki) and Simon Neary and Dips Chauhan (Hudspeth/Crowe Racing LCR Honda) disappointment for the former and hard work ahead for the latter. Both suffered engine blow-ups, weekend over for Atkinson, engine change for Neary. They managed it but missed qualifying and would start both races from the back of the grid.
John Holden and Andy Winkle (D&A Walmsley LCR Suzuki) were on pole with a 1-16.56, over a second clear of Ian and Carl Bell (Ian Bell M/cs LCR Yamaha) and Wil and Andy Smith (Smith Racing Shelbourne Honda) third.
RACE ONE: 19 starters and all got away well, Holden, Bell and Smith maintaining their top three grid positions at the end of the first lap. Roy Hanks and Dave Wells (Dorwingear Ltd Molyneux Suzuki), Tony Elmer and Darren Marshall (AS Broadley Decorators Ireson Yamaha) and Stephen Kershaw and Robin Wilson (Blinkbonny Quarry LCR Suzuki) completed the first six with Neary upto 13th.
Paul and Steve Sanderson (Sanderson Racing DDR Suzuki) had made life difficult for themselves, having gone grass-tracking and tailed the field by a few seconds.
Kershaw took fifth from Elmer on the second lap and then moved ahead of Hanks a lap later as Holden streaked to a 5.2 second lead. Tony Baker and Fiona Baker-Milligan (Team Cumbria Express Baker Suzuki) were seventh ahead of Miles Bennett and Kevin Perry (Mad Cow Racing Shelbourne Honda) with Neary now up to ninth.
At the end of lap four, half-distance, Holden's lead was over seven seconds, with Bell quite comfortable in second ahead of Smith, who was now under pressure from Kershaw. Hanks, Elmer and Baker were 5-6-7th with Neary now eighth. Bennett and Carl Fenwick and Mark Sayers (Fenwick Racing Shelbourne Honda) were 9th and 10th but also second and third in the FII Cup positions. However, Fenwick was to retire on lap six with cam sensor failure letting Dean Lindley and Grant Hunter (Pegasus Externals LCR Suzuki) into 10th. Dave Wallis and Steve Wareham (Team Petpals LCR Honda), Robert Atkinson and Simon Dawson (Clifton Motorsport BLR Yamaha), Howard Baker and Mike Killingsworth (D&J Bike Spares Lincoln Shelbourne Honda), Dave Kimberley and Shelley Smithies (Just Landscapes Ireson Honda) and wildcards Andy King and Kenny Cole completed the top 15.
Holden cruised to a comfortable victory but Smith forged ahead of Bell on the penultimate lap to claim his best-ever championship result.
Kershaw, Hanks and Elmer maintained their top six positions while Neary finally got past Baker on the last lap for seventh, Bennett and Lindley completing the top ten. Howard Baker got past Robert Atkinson for 12th while Russ and Rod Pearce (Pearce Racing LCR Suzuki) moved up to 15th and the last championship point.
The Sandersons finally got into the pack and were 16th ahead of King and John Saunders and Barry Stone ( Stapleton Tyres MR Equipe Suzuki) - Barry suffering from his shoulder injury on the bumpy-in-places circuit. So, good results for the leaders of the two championships, Holden and Kershaw. Could they clinch the titles in race two?
RACE TWO: The first race had been interesting enough but the second was superb viewing.
Holden did what he does rather well - get a good lead early - 1.19 seconds after the first lap. Bell and Hanks were next up followed by Smith and Kershaw with Neary already in 6th, from 19th on the grid! No changes on lap two with Tony Baker, Wallis, Fenwick and Lindley completing the top ten.
Hanks retired on the third lap and Neary moved past Kershaw to take fourth and immediately closed on Smith. It seemed inevitable that Neary would take third and Fred Clarke, commentating, speculated whether Neary would get past Bell and even close on Holden. And that's when it got interesting for both Smith and Kershaw were reading a different script! Neary would close right up on the straights but Smith was braking later for the chicanes. Kershaw then began to close on Neary and this 3-team battle edged closer to Bell in second.
Holden's lead was up to seven seconds with two laps to go. Bell and Smith still podium-placed but Kershaw was on a mission and regained fourth from Neary.
Holden took the win by 8.5 seconds but on the penultimate lap Neary repassed Kershaw only for the young Scot to not only again pass Neary but on the last corner on the last lap he dived inside Smith to take the final podium spot by just a fifth of a second. Smith and Neary took 4th and 5th and there was a 15 second gap to Elmer in sixth. Tony Baker was 7th while Lindley reversed the first race Cup order by pipping Bennett for 8th. Howard Baker was 10th ahead of Robert Atkinson with Kimberley, Sanderson, Pearce, King and Saunders the remaining finishers after Wallis and Fenwick had had to retire.
Excellent entertainment for the good-sized crowd on the spectator banking. Holden and Kershaw enhanced their championship leads but both championships go to the final meeting - at Cadwell Park on October 2-3.
Championship top tens:
Super F2 standings:
Holden 215,
Neary 175,
Bell 112,
Elmer 106,
Kershaw 98,
Hanks 97,
Bennett 66,
Smith 65,
Bryan 64 ,
T.Baker 59
FII Cup:
Kershaw 206,
Bennett 164,
R.Atkinson 118,
Fenwick 111,
Eastell 92,
Sanderson 92,
D.Atkinson 68,
Pearce 58,
Dukes 50,
Yesterday was no exception. Although we couldn't get there for the qualifying we arrived just as the last qualifying session was being run. Steve and Rob had increased their speed during qualifying and were 6th on the grid. This was an improvement of 2 places over free practice.
The first race was thrilling. I managed to watch from the high banking near the pit lane entrance and it was amazing to see these modern gladiators doing battle through the chicane. Steve and Rob did not dissapoint. Whilst I'm sure that the repoprt Steve will write will give you the 'nitty gritty' about what he did to whom and where, I can only say that the race for 4th was amazing and Steve pulled out a commanding lead on the 5th placed outfit to cross the line after 8 laps comfortably in 4th place and more importantly the first British Cup finisher!
When I and my wife returned to the paddock there was no sign of anyone! What we didn't realise was that as Steve and Rob had come in 1st in the British Cup they had a trophy each to collect...so therefore we missed the presentation! Doh!
Unfortunately the best was yet to come but my wife and I couldn't stay for the 'Grand Finale'. We'd left the dog at home and although we'd arranged with our lovely neighbours to let him out during the afternoon, we needed to get back to him.
I rang Steve at 8.48pm to get a report of what had happened in the 2nd race...They came 3rd overall and, once again, first in the British Cup....More trophies and also they got interviewed on the podium. Darn it...as Steve said.."You should have let the dog wet the carpet"! 3rd place was achieved on the last bend in the last lap, you don't get much closer racing than that!
So for the first time they'd visited Castle Combe a resounding success can be chalked up.
1st race action, Steve and Rob already in 4th place after starting 6th on the grid!
1st race action, the penultimate lap and number 4 had just taken the bales/tyres out on the chicane!
The team were supplied with another tuned engine after blowing up their premier one the week before. They headed out for Practice only to have engine troubles again so the duo pulled in after three laps. The problem was sorted and the pair set their minds on Qualifying. The weather was the next obstacle as rain kept coming and going with a strong, warm wind so the track condition kept changing. The team made their tyre choice and headed out for the 20 minute session. Unfortunately it was the wrong choice and the duo could only manage 14th place on the grid (7th in the Cup) out of 26 sidecars. Kershaw explained "we couldn't get enough heat through the tyres and the bike just wanted to spin, it was a gamble and this time it didn't pay off."
A shot from behind, passenger Rob Wilson gets tucked in through a left hand corner.
The team changed engines on Saturday night to their only remaining one; a standard, back-up motor.
Sunday morning brought the sunshine out and the team were ready to race. They headed out for morning Warm-up and achieved the 3rd fastest time. A much better start to the day!
Race Two got under way with the team starting from their 14thplace grid slot. After 2 out of the 20 laps the duo were up to 10th place and flying! By half distance Kershaw and Wilson had battled their way through to 5th place overall and had already taken the lead in the Cup competition. The duo pushed hard and caught the next two machines, soon making their move into 4th. Kershaw and Wilson hung on to take a fantastic 4th overall and a win in the Cup, breaking the cup lap record in the process! The duo's thoughts were "what a fantastic race, we just rode the wheels of it and took every overtaking opportunity we could!"
The 3rd and final race of the day was the cancelled race from Mallory Park (lost due to track problems) so the team started from their Mallory position; 9th on the grid. The lights went out and all was go! The duo held their position on the opening lap and then moved up the field to 6th, holding that until the last few laps when they managed to steal 5th and were right on the back of 4th. However, the red flags came out as there had been an incident on the track. As the race was over three quarters distance it was declared a result. 5th place for Kershaw and Wilson and their 2nd win in the Cup.
After that action packed weekend of highs and lows the team have come away leading the British Cup by 28 points and are lying 6th overall in the British Championship, just two points from 5th. The next round of the Championship is at Castle Coombe on the 4th of September. The next outing for Kershaw Racing will be at Knockhill on the 14th and 15th of August for the Jock Taylor Memorial Races.
Kershaw racing headed out for free practice and set a good time putting them 5th fastest out of a full grid of 26 and with a few tweaks to the set-up were confident they could improve on this for the qualifying session later that evening. The time came to head out for the 20 minute qualifying session, by the third lap the duo had already clocked the same time as free practice and things were looking good, but as the session went on in the scorching heat the Lauder pairing could not improve on their time and pulled in to check the bike over half way through the session. Wilson reported vibration from the back wheel which comes from over heating. The duo headed back out to try and find just that little extra but the tyres had had enough and the outfit was sliding everywhere not letting driver Kershaw get the power down. The team was still lying 5th until the last few minutes and dropped to 9th as the session ended. Kershaw saying " We thought the back tyre had plenty life in it but its not often we race in nearly 30 degree temperatures in this country and the rubber just couldn't handle that." The Duo still qualified 1st in the British Cup which they lead.
Race 2…there was no race 2 as the blistering conditions had caused the tarmac on the track to break up and it was deemed un-safe to race. The second race will be run at the next round at Snetterton in Norfolk, a track where Kershaw Racing has never been before. This takes place on the 17th and 18th of July with races covered on Eurosport2.
The Team suffered brake problems in practice and then again in qualifying only managing 3 laps before running straight on at the fastest part of the circuit. Kershaw managing to get the bike stopped before the tyre wall, "it's a long run-off there and lucky for us the grass was dry so I could keep the bike straight and get it stopped." So the duo had to settle for 19th on the grid out of 30.
Race 1 saw the duo battle there way to 11th place but only to again have brake problems mid race distance. The duo settled for their position and came home in 11th and 3rd in the British cup. Kershaw said "No chance we could have gone any further, we could hardly stop for the corners ourselves let alone out-brake anyone else!" Race 2 got under way and finally the brake problem was sorted. The Lauder pairing fought their way to 9th place and 2nd in the cup. Kershaw and Wilson were flying, just 0.03 off the cup lap record. Unfortunately the pairing ran out of laps to get any higher up the pack despite lapping at the same times as 4th place. The team came away still lying 4th overall in the championship and still leading the cup by 14 points. Kershaw and Wilson final words were "it could have been better, but it could have been much worse!" The next round of the British Championship is held at Mallory Park in Leicestershire on 26 and 27 June with the second race covered on British Eurosport.
The team came away with great results on and off the track as the new set up on the bike worked well. They now had 6 weeks off to relax then prepare for the second half on the season, sure to be a hot one….
The team was confident with the bike set up after a great ride at Brands Hatch two weeks before but with Thruxton being the fastest track in the country and the team still without a tuned race engine, scoring good points was top of the list.
Saturday morning brought perfect conditions, not a cloud in the sky, The sidecars headed out for free practice, a 20 minute session which for most was a chance to learn the track as only 3 of the 26 strong field had been there before! By the end of the session the Lauder pairing were getting to grips with the track finishing 6th fastest, good start.
Qualifying, Another 20 minute session on Saturday evening this time to decide the grid positions for Sundays two races. Kershaw and Wilson stayed out for the full 20 minutes doing lap after lap, learning all the time which seemed to pay off as on their final lap the duo put a time in to secure a second row start, 4th fastest. The Team is also competing in the British Cup and had qualified the lead Cup team.
Sunday again brought perfect conditions temperatures up around 20 degrees. Race 1 started at lunch time in front of a packed crowd. Kershaw saying "You couldn't see any grass bank just people everywhere, that's how it should be" As the lights went out the duo got a good start but fell back to 6th place off the line. By lap two they had nipped back into 5th place but the leading pack had gapped them. The duo rode the wheels of the standard engine and pulled in the 4th and 3rd place outfits lapping faster than both. Despite this they could not make a pass and took 5th place 0.3 of a second off 4th. The duo was first home in the Cup by nearly 10 seconds so took maximum 25 points for the Cup win.
Wilson (L) & Kershaw (R) discussing tactics
Kershaw and Wilson through the final chicane
On lap 3 they were passed on the back straight and dropped to 7th. The duo kept their composure and dug deep. A lap later they were back in 6th with a fantastic pass up the inside. The following lap the Lauder pairing out braked the outfit in front to steal 5th. There was a bit of a gap now to 4th place but the duo reeled them in with some blistering lap times.
A slight mistake from the 4th placed machine and through Kershaw and Wilson went! The Pairing pushed to catch the 3rd place outfit and closed the gap but some canny driving from the 2004 British Champion kept the lads at bay.
Kershaw and Wilson held their position and then with 3 laps to go the current British Champion, lying in 2nd place, broke down promoting Kershaw and Wilson to 3rd place. The Lauder duo took the chequered flag in a fantastic and career best of 3rd overall and their second win of the day in the British Cup.
Taking the chequered flag
The duo headed out on track for first practice on Saturday lunchtime posting the 2nd fastest time of the session a real upset in the making…. Later that evening it was time for qualifying. A 20 minute session for the teams to put together a perfect lap to fight for the elusive pole position. The team made a few little changes to the outfit and by half way they were lying 4th fastest and only getting faster, then disaster, a blown engine! The Lauder pairing had no choice but to retire from the session with still 10 minutes remaining, driver Steve Kershaw saying "I am very disappointed as I knew we could have challenged for the front row." The Lauder duo still managed to put in a good time in the first half of the session to seal 6th place on the grid.
The team had to change from their fully tuned race engine (now broken) to a standard engine (a vast difference in performance). Nevertheless the pairing headed out in good spirits for the first race. As the lights went out a good start from the duo but then Kershaw missed a gear and they dropped back to 10th place. As the pack settled Kershaw and Wilson were on a charge with some fantastic overtaking the duo were soon up to 7th then 6th then 5th then 4th! They were catching the 3rd and 2nd place outfits rapidly but running out of laps, the duo pulled the gap down from 4 seconds to 2 seconds but ran out of time and settled for 4th place. A fantastic result, breaking the F2 Cup lap record in the process.
Race 2 went out live on Eurosport2 and after such a strong performance in race one the team lined up ready for action.
Lights go out and off they go, a good start from the duo, the first 10 outfits all together swapping places and paint! Kershaw and Wilson holding their 6th position and looking strong. Then just as they made their move for 5th the safety car was deployed as two other outfits crashed out at the fist corner. All sidecars must follow the car until it is safe to proceed racing again. After 6 laps the safety car pulled in and racing was go! As the pack settled Kershaw and Wilson again lined up the move for 5th place but another incident on the track caused for a race stoppage. As the race was over half way it was declared a result. Still a solid 6th place for the team but disappointing due to race incidents.
The Lauder pairing came away from round 1 of the F2 Swan Combie Challenge in a great 5th place just 3 points adrift of the top 3. Round 2 of the Swan Combie Challenge is at Thruxton on April 17/18 along with the first round of the Formula 2 British Championship. Photo by DCD Images Caption : Kershaw and Wilson (number29) leading the pack.
Kershaw & wilson leading the pack - Photos by DCD Images
Over the winter they had fitted a new GSX-R600 K7 engine with rather more power than last year's. Following a practice day at East Fortune the previous week to test the installation and settings the team was keen to see how the new engine would perform in a race and decided to enter the club meeting at Croft as a warm-up for the first round of the British Formula 2 Championship which begins Easter Weekend at Brands Hatch in Kent. There was no qualifying session; starting grid postion was determined by ballot.
The boys found themselves near the back of the field - a situation they began to rectify as soon as the race started. Carving their way through a mixed pack of F1 (1000cc) and F2 (600cc) outfits they crossed the finish line in fifth place overall, first F2 Home and with fastest F2 lap.
Race two on Saturday began from fifth position on the grid, reflecting their finish in the previous race. It would be harder to improve from here; all the outfits ahead of them were F1s and the long straights of Croft gave the more powerful machines an advantage. They finished fourth!
Sidecar racing can be very intense; Kershaw and Wilson (129) go round the outside of two F1 sidecars at Sunny Out bend at the Croft circuit in County Durham.
Back in the pits it became clear that the weekend was over. Two screws holding the airbox onto the engine had worked loose and had been sucked into the intakes, jamming the throttle. Although the screws were retrieved a washer had succeeded in getting into the engine and a stripdown will be necessary to remove it and check the engine for damage. Although the team face a busy week if they are to be ready for Brands Hatch they came away from Croft reasonably pleased with both their performance and that of the new engine.
Photo & Report by Rob Evans
The team had a fantastic 2009. They won the North East Club Championship for the first time, won the F2 Scottish Championship for the second time along with a new F2 lap record at East Fortune.
The Lauder based team finished 11th overall in the British F2 Championship and took 2nd place in the British Cup. A fantastic season.
Kershaw Racing would like to take this opportunity to thank all their 2009 sponsors without whom they could not compete at this level.
In 2010 Kershaw Racing will be again concentrating on the Yokohama/ACU British F2 championship and the British Super Bike Swan Combie Challenge.
Five rounds will be run alongside the SuperBikes with TV coverage on British Eurosport. The team still qualifies for the British cup and will be going out to win it after there hard fought second last year. They also want to be well within the top 10 overall.
The team will be competing at as many Melville Club rounds as possible (East Fortune) and North East Club rounds as some of the meetings clash with the British championship.
Work over the winter has involved many things including fitting new engines, air box and oil cooler, all to try and help the performance of their machine.
The team hit the track on Sunday the 21st march at East Fortune for there first test. All went well with a few minor tweaks with the drivers seating position. " Its amazing how rusty you are after 5 months off? You think you're going fast until you see your lap times!" was the comment from driver Steve Kershaw, by the end of the day the duo were well up to speed and revved up for the season ahead….