HASLAM AIMING FOR ARAGON GLORY

Akrapovic equipped LEON HASLAM is looking to repeat his podium finish of the last round at Misano in Italy when he contests round eight of the World Superbike Championship at Aragon in Spain on Sunday.

Leon Haslam- only got eyes for a podium

Haslam took his fifth podium finish of the year with third place at Misano and currently sits in sixth place in the World Championship after seven of the 14 rounds.

“The first half of the season has been full of ups and downs,” recalled Haslam. “I’ve had a few podium finishes but should have had at least two or three wins. But it has been a very tough first half of the season, with breaking my leg, crashing in the lead in Holland, being taken out whilst leading at Donington and some other annoying little issues.

“I’ve missed out on a lot of points that should’ve been in the bag but we are all still very close in the Championship. And I’m confident about the second part of the season. We know we can win and we know we can fight for the podium every weekend.”

Haslam is relishing the challenge of returning to Aragon after a two-day test at the circuit last week.

“Aragon was a new circuit last year so it was the first time for everyone. Many teams have tested there since, as we did last week and we found good settings for the S1000RR so I am looking forward again to racing at Aragon.

“Last year it was not the best of weekends for us, Troy broke his arm and I had pretty average results. But this time I am really looking forward to going there. The track is very demanding, it has a lot of corners that hang on to you. It is not a circuit that suits an aggressive riding style, more fast and flowing. You have to be very precise with your lines and your set-up, but all of that produces good racing.”

Akrapovic and other bits to add some Bionics to Your Bike: www.performanceparts-ltd.com

Performance Parts Ltd- 

Bionics for your Bike- 
Better, Stronger, Faster..

Double Victory For Smiths Triumph At Knockhill

The Smiths Triumph Racing Team enjoyed a superb weekend of racing at Knockhill in Scotland with both Glen Richards and Billy McConnell taking the race wins in the Motorpoint British Supersport Championship.

Riding the Smiths-prepared Daytona 675cc Triumphs and following on from Richards taking victory in Saturday's sprint race, the Australian pairing took a 1-2 in Sunday's race to move into second and third overall in the championship with more than half the season still to go.

Glen Richards- race win

 Saturday's 18-lap race got underway in dry conditions and after a safety car deployment, Richards was able to dominate the race, leading for the remaining distance and crossing the line over a second clear of main championship rival Jack Kennedy. The battle for second saw no less than six riders involved and McConnell was able to take fourth with third team member Luke Mossey just over half a second back in sixth.

Sunday went even better for the team with Richards and McConnell leading the way from the start. The duo ended up in a battle with fellow Triumph rider Christian Iddon before he dropped out with technical trouble and for the last third of the race it was a straight shoot-out between the two team-mates. Positions changed with frequent regularity but on this occasion it was McConnell who came out on top for his second win of the season. However, with Kennedy back in third, Richards was able to reduce his championship lead further with it now standing at just 18.5 points.

Cambridge rider Mossey was able to regroup after a sluggish start which saw him down in 12th but by the chequered flag he had moved up to a fine fifth to claim 11 valuable points.

Johnny Blackshaw also had an excellent ride in the Metzeler National Superstock 600cc Championship with the Stretton rider taking third place for his first podium finish of the year. After the original race was stopped due to a combination of rain and oil on the track, Blackshaw took full advantage of the shorter race to move up to ninth in the points table.

Glen Richards: "With pole position and a first and a second in the two races, it's been a really good weekend and with 45 points, I've been able to claw back some of the gap to Jack, which was obviously very important. The weekend really couldn't have gone much better and whilst it would of course been nice to get both wins, it wasn't essential and the last thing I wanted was a DNF. There's a long, long way still to go so I just want to keep finishing races and racking up the points."

Billy McConnell- brilliant win in the Sunday race

 Billy McConnell: "After the disappointment of finishing in fourth on Saturday, it was important to get my head down from the start on Sunday and that's exactly what I did. We made a small change to the bike, going down one tooth on the rear sprocket to give me more drive and it certainly worked. The longer races seem to suit me more as well and with the bike feeling strong, the race win feels really good. I'm a long way back in the championship but there's a lot of races still to go so I just want to keep taking the race wins and creep up the table as best I can."

Luke Mossey: "Two top six finishes is pretty good going but I was disappointed with Sunday's race and it was the start that cost me. I was too slow off the line and that dropped me a long way back and although I was able to climb back to fifth, I'd left myself too much to do. The bike's working really well and with my two team-mates winning, I'm desperate to get up there and join them but we'll keep chipping away and hopefully get on the podium sooner rather than later."

Johnny Blackshaw: "This podium's been a long time coming so to finally get it is a really good feeling. To be fair, the bike's the best thing out there so we should be on the podium week in week out but we've had a bit of bad luck at some of the rounds, which have prevented it from happening. Everything's come together this weekend though so, hopefully, this is the shape of things to come."

For more information on Smiths Triumph please visit www.smithsracing.co.uk

We're pleased to support, sponsor and supply performance parts to Smiths of Gloucester racing. for more information on the parts we have to add some 'bionics to your bike' please visit www.performanceparts-ltd.com

Performance Parts Ltd- 

Bionics for your Bike- 
Better, Stronger, Faster..

More Points for Gearlink Kawasaki

Motorpoint British Supersport
 
The Motorpoint British Supersport Championship headed to Knockhill this weekend, Ben Wilson riding the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R for Gearlink Kawasaki, dug deep again this weekend and despite a technical problem in race one he gained a solid 11th place and things improved during race two and Ben was unfortunate not to get a podium and finished in fourth place. His new team-mate for Knockhill, Dan Cooper secured 17th in race one but improved massively for race two and gained 10th place. 

Gearlink Kawasaki's Ben Wilson

Ben struggled for a good set up during the wet qualifying session and ended up in ninth position, this put him back on the third row for the first race. It is very difficult at the short 1.3-mile circuit to make passing manoeuvres and so a good start was vital. Ben gained one of his famously good starts and was up to fifth at the end of the first lap. He was sitting there comfortably but started to struggle with a fuel problem around half distance; he had to nurse the Gearlink Kawasaki home but still managed to finish in the points.
 
He only managed to move up to eighth on the grid for race two; he was boxed into the first corner and was ninth after the opening lap and was left with a lot of work to do. He worked hard and raced a strong race and managed to work his way through to fourth place.
 
Ben Wilson - "It's been another tough weekend and this year just doesn't seem to be going the way I would have liked it to. We struggled to get a good set up all weekend and not sure why, as it's a track we have been strong at in the past. We made a lot of changes but with the changing weather conditions it was hard to get a decent amount of laps in to test it. I'm just hoping things will start taking a turn for the better."
 
Dan Cooper was only brought onto the team this last week and jumped onto the Gearlink Kawasaki with no testing or set up, the first race was almost a testing session for him but the tenth place in the second race was a good result for him and the Gearlink Kawasaki team. He was 18th on the grid for race two but worked hard to push his way through the pack and to come through to a points scoring position was a good result.

Dan Cooper- first outing on the Kawasaki

 Dan Cooper - "It's been really good to ride for the Gearlink Kawasaki team this year and I rode with them at the North West so I knew they would look after me. It's been tough to jump on the bike and try and get it set up for a circuit like Knockhill, the Gearlink team have helped me a lot this weekend to try and get things right, the first race result wasn't ideal but I'm pretty pleased with tenth in race two. It's been fairly difficult and I'm hoping I'll be riding the bike at Oulton as it's one of my favourite circuits."
 

 Metzeler Superstock 600s
 
Scott Hudson qualified 22nd position in the dry conditions but was lying in sixth place during wet qualifying on Saturday. Once again it is another circuit the youngster has never been to and he secured 16th place just out of the points in the action packed race.
 Scott Hudson - "I'm fairly happy with the weekend it's a tough little track to learn and get right, it's hard coming to a lot of the circuits as a I spend the first few sessions learning the track and how to ride it. With the second qualifying being wet it meant my only chance to qualify was my second time around the circuit in Q1 on Friday. The race was a bit mental and between the two red flags the Gearlink Kawasaki team changed my shock and this made a big difference so I hope we've found a turning point now. I did enjoy the race I just wished I'd been able to get in the points but hopefully at Oulton that will be the case."

For more information on Gearlink Kawasaki please visit: www.gearlinkracing.com

We're pleased to support, sponsor and supply performance parts to Gealink Kawasaki racing. for more information on the parts we have to add some 'bionics to your bike' please visit www.performanceparts-ltd.com

Performance Parts Ltd- 

Bionics for your Bike- 
Better, Stronger, Faster..

 

SWAN YAMAHA REGAIN MCE BSB STANDINGS LEAD AT KNOCKHILL

Swan Yamaha’s Tommy Hill regained the lead in the overall standings after a double podium finish at the fifth round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Knockhill whilst Noriyuki Haga scored a sixth place on his first visit to the Fife circuit.

Hill- happy

 In the opening race of the weekend Hill came out fighting and was lying third on the opening lap before making a determined move on Michael Laverty to claim second place before the trio again went head-to-head in race two, with the defending champion securing a third place. Haga was able to score a solid sixth place in the opening race but whilst in contention for fifth in race two he crashed out at Scotsman unhurt.

Hill said: “We can’t complain about the results this weekend; two podium finishes is good although as a racer you always want to win. We have been consistent and I knew the races would be tough as you can never underestimate anybody as there are so many riders capable of winning. I rode hard in the first race but so was Shakey and Michael and it was like an elastic band; where one of us was quicker in one section the other was faster somewhere else. It was a bit of a game of cat and mouse and we knew that the Swan Yamaha had the pace to be up there at the front, there were a couple of times that I thought about having a bit of a lunge and I was tempted but at the same time I didn’t want us to all end up crashing. We were all pushing really hard again in race two as we all know that we need the podium finishes so we have the credits for the Showdown. I wasn’t as comfortable in race two but we kept trying and two podiums was better than two crashes - we are even hungrier for Oulton Park now!”

Haga said: “In race one I was happy with the result for my first time here, but during the race I wasn’t comfortable to run at the pace that we needed to be at the front. We made a mistake with the direction we went with the setting and we wanted to improve in race two. The second race I had a better feeling but I still couldn’t push as hard as I wanted to and then I lost the front and crashed. We didn’t have a lot of time to make big setting changes this weekend but my Swan Yamaha crew worked very hard and I need to thank them and also say sorry for the crash. I am ninth in the standings and I will do everything I can to jump to fifth or sixth which we need for the Showdown. I look forward to Oulton Park and I think we can have another good result there.”

Haga: first time at Knockhill

 Team Owner Shaun Muir concluded: “It was another solid weekend from Tommy and two podium finishes was a fantastic result; it is great for the team to be back at the top of the standings. It was a shame for Noriyuki to have crashed out, especially as he had made some improvements for race two and was moving up the order. He will be back at Oulton Park though and will be aiming for that top six.”

For more information visit www.swanyamaha.co.uk 

We're pleased to support, sponsor and supply performance parts to Swan Yamaha racing. for more information on the parts we have to add some 'bionics to your bike' please visit www.performanceparts-ltd.com

Performance Parts Ltd- 

Bionics for your Bike- 
Better, Stronger, Faster..

It was a good weekend for Samsung Honda, the Louth based race team that use Performance Parts Ltd products.

Michael Laverty celebrated his second race win of the season at the fifth round of the British Superbike Championship at Knockhill.

Laverty- Winning again

Laverty had qualified on the front row and finished the opening race of the day in third before charging to the front of the field in race two to give the Samsung Honda team their third win of the season. Team-mate Jon Kirkham, who is returning to full fitness following his crash at Oulton Park, just missed out on a top ten finish in 12th in the first race before scoring points in 14th in race two.

In Superstock 1000, Jason O'Halloran crashed out of the race whilst in contention; the Australian was disappointed but is now determined to regain his championship lead at Oulton Park next time out. Gary Johnson took a solid eighth place finish on his return to the Samsung Honda team as he continued to improve throughout the weekend.

Michael Laverty: “After Snetterton there were a few people that said my win would be a one off and wrote me off, but this weekend proved that we can be up fighting for the title too. I knew that the races were going to be tough today and Tommy and Shakey upped the pace again and I was pushing really hard. There were areas where we had a concertina effect where one of us was faster than the other but overall our lap times were very similar. I thought maybe on the last lap we could have had a sniff at Tommy in race one but I didn’t want us to tangle. I wasn’t overly dissatisfied with the first race but we made some changes that gave me more confidence in the front for the second one. I made some early passes and then controlled it from the front and it worked out perfectly. Our championship is really back on track now so we are looking forward to Oulton Park.”

Jon Kirkham: “It wasn’t the easiest weekend for me and something just didn’t click, which we will be looking at before Oulton Park. We made some improvements between the races but it wasn’t enough to give us the pace we needed. It was a tough weekend as I have only completed one race (at Snetterton) since the crash so I have been building back up. We have a bit of time now until Oulton Park to assess what we can do before the next round to put us back up where we need to be.”

Jason O’Halloran: “It was a tough race and I had a pretty good pace on the Samsung Honda and was taking my time to come through as there were a couple of places I was losing out a bit, but other areas we were stronger. I was waiting for the guys to make a mistake which they both did by running wide at the Hairpin and I stayed on my normal line and went under them both. I thought I was through but then they came back and I crashed. It was a real shame we couldn’t rejoin, but that is the rules and now we just need to look at coming back at Oulton Park.”

Gary Johnson: “I had missed a few rounds this season with the road races so I am always a little behind but we made some big steps forward and it was great to give the Samsung Honda team a top ten finish.
Havier Beltran, Team Manager: “Michael rode fantastically today and showed what we know he is capable of. We made some changes to the Fireblade which allowed Michael to ride his best race of the season. JK hasn’t been able to match some of his previous performances but we will be working with him before Oulton Park to try and improve. Jason’s bad Knockhill luck continues but a crash and no points was better than how we left here last year and Gary also improved throughout the weekend to score a strong finish on his return with the team.”

For further information about Honda, the Honda Racing team and its riders please visit
www.honda.co.uk or www.honda-racing.co.uk

We're pleased to support, sponsor and supply performance parts to Samsung Honda Racing. for more information on the parts we have to add some 'bionics to your bike' please visit www.performanceparts-ltd.com

Performance Parts Ltd- 

Bionics for your Bike- 
Better, Stronger, Faster..

Yoshimura comes to Performance Parts Ltd!

1^st June 2012 

  

We are very pleased to announce that Performance Parts Ltd have been appointed the new official UK distributor for the full range of products from iconic tuning parts manufacturer Yoshimura.

The Yoshimura range famously includes road exhausts and engine tuning parts, but also includes a wide range of other tuning accessories for road and race bikes and a full range of motocross exhausts. We plan to offer the full range of products and are delighted at this new development and the chance to further strengthen our position as the UK’s leading aftermarket exhaust supplier.

Yoshimura identified Performance Parts Ltd as their logical partner in the UK because of our specialist knowledge, experience, and position as a leading technical hard parts distributor. We are very excited about the new partnership and delighted to add such a strong brand name to our portfolio.

We will of course continue our development, focus and dedication to our existing exhaust brands – Akrapovic and Remus - the addition of Yoshimura further enhances our appeal to the industry as the one-stop performance specialist exhaust supplier but in no way diminishes our support of our existing product range.

We plan to forge a strong working relationship with Crescent Suzuki Racing and tap into the considerable knowledge base and experience gained in many years of racing with Yoshimura products and it is envisaged that Crescent will be a technical support partner for Performance Parts Ltd with Yoshimura products and continue to develop and support the Yoshimura brand at World Superbike level.

Full details of pricing structure and dealer discounts have not yet been finalised but a full price list is planned to be released shortly. Existing Yoshimura dealers are encouraged to contact us to continue supply and register their interest with our sales dept.

Tel       01788 869100      

Web     www.performanceparts-ltd.com  

Email   Yoshimura@performanceparts-ltd.com