Another Podium for Rutter
 It
was a positive weekend for the NW200 Ducati Team at round
eight of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, Michael
Rutter on the North West 200 Ducati gained a fourth and second
place in the two races at the extremely short Knockhill race
circuit. His team-mate John Laverty was ruled out of racing
this weekend after he crashed at the fast Hislops' corner
on Friday sustaining two broken ribs and knocking himself
unconscious.
Michael Rutter on the F08 Ducati secured a strong second place
on the gird in Saturday's wet qualifying session and was eager
to gain two good results at the short 1.3-mile Knockhill circuit.
It was a frantic first race for the North West 200 Ducati
rider after he gained the hole-shot for the 30-lap race. A
rain shower before the start of race one saw a rush in the
garage to make the correct tyre choice, with conditions drying
quickly most riders opted for full slicks and it was a choice
that proved correct.
Gaining a fantastic start, Rutter led the pack into the opening
corner and was soon locked in a battle with Suzuki rider Tom
Sykes and the pair were dicing for the lead for the opening
nine laps. After a coming together with Sykes at the Hairpin,
Rutter lost the use of his quick shifter and was not able
to stay with the leaders. Fighting hard he wanted to try and
ensure he gained a podium position but it was to no avail
and in the closing stages of the race James Ellison got past
him into the first corner and Rutter had to settle for fourth
place as he crossed the line.
In a chaotic race two, the rain came just as the riders lined
up on the grid causing another mad dash back to the garages
to change tyres once again. All riders choosing full wets,
then the scheduled 30-lap race got under way. After ten laps
a big crash involving three riders forced the race to be red
flagged and re-started. A 20-lap race was planned and the
riders had to gamble on tyre choice, Rutter opted for full
slicks, as a distinguished dry line was appearing on the circuit.
On the re-start Rutter once again gained the hole-shot but
slipped back to fourth behind Shane Byrne, Leon Haslam and
Karl Harris. Rutter found a way passed Harris on lap 13 and
the race was then cut short after race leader Shakey Byrne
crashed at Seat Curve on lap 14. With Shakey being the cause
of the red flag, Rutter secured a solid second place.
Commenting Michael said "I'm really
pleased with the two results today as we'd had a few problems
at Oulton and we weren't sure what direction to go in with
the bike to make it right. We tried a few different things
this weekend, which seemed to work well and I ended the day
with a pretty good fourth and second place. I hope now we've
managed to make progress and that we can carry on this form
to the remaining rounds of the season. Second place in the
Championship is still up for grabs and even though I'm 48
points behind, there are still 200 points to be gained and
as we all know in racing anything can happen. I would also
like to extend my thoughts to the family and friends of Craig
Jones, he'll be missed around the paddock as he was a real
character."
Race 1 Result
1 Tom Sykes Suzuki
2 Shane Byrne Ducati
3 James Ellison Honda
4th Michael Rutter North West 200 Ducati
Race 2 Result
1 Leon Haslam Honda
2nd Michael Rutter North West 200 Ducati
3 Karl Harris Yamaha
Championship Standings
Shane Byrne 332
Cal Crutchlow 222
Tom Sykes 214
7th Michael Rutter 174
|
