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Mark Lawes took the 2009 Buff/ACU British Supermono championship aboard his GRC Pami BMW with a brace of wins at the sun-baked, Brands Hatch Indy circuit this weekend. Lawes arrived at the circuit for the final round of the 2009 Buff/ACU sponsored series in a determined mood. The multiple British and European champion was keen to wrap up the 25th anniversary championship as soon as possible. His 50.728 second lap-time in qualifying put him on pole by quite a margin and sent a clear message to the rest of the grid, and particularly his only remaining championship rival, Michael Payne, who could only manage 4th on his Tigcraft Nova 450. The rest of the front row was completed by Aaron Easter (Tigcraft Rotax 640) and Mark George (TGR 426). Race 1, on Saturday, was a masterclass by Lawes as he led the field away from the start and was never headed. He built a comfortable lead with a series of blisteringly fast laps and crossed the line 18 laps later to secure the championship. Behind him was a different matter with a 3-way tussle between Mark George, Michael Payne and former Superbike rider Dijon Compton riding an MHD Suzuki 800. That battle finished when, with 2 laps to go, Compton out-braked himself into the hairpin, allowing George to take the advantage and claim the second step on the podium with Payne finishing third. That result was enough for the Australian to claim second place to Lawes in the championship. Behind this was another close tussle which included Aaron Easter, Perry Goldstein (KTM 610), Jeff Claridge (Nova Tigcraft Honda 450), Mark Hughes (GRC Honda 450) and, new to the series, Jay Bellard-Smith riding the Smith Brothers’ Honda. This group was finally led home by Easter who had hoped for better things from his front row start. Sunday’s race saw some changes at the front as Compton made a fantastic start and led for the first lap. He was being chased hard by Lawes, George and Easter. Payne had made a terrible start and was at the back of a close fighting group that comprised Goldstein, Bellars-Smith and Ivan Porter on his self-made Rotax. As the race progressed, Lawes showed his champion’s form to pass Compton, and then build a small cushion, which he held to the finish, despite Compton riding the wheels off his ageing motorcycle. Sadly, his bike developed a mis-fire which slowed him down and after George and Easter came past, he retired. These two continued their battle all the way to the flag with the wiley former champion, George, able to hold the edge and finish second by a small margin from Easter in third. Payne was unable to work all the way through the group he was following and finished 6th behind the evergreen Goldstein in 4th and new-comer Bellars-Smith in 5th.
Ride of the day had to go to Mark Hughes who started poorly and found himself at the back of the pack, by a long way, at the first corner. For the next 8 laps he literally flew through the field to catch Claridge and Aria Laine in 7th and 8th, before crashing at Druids and then suffering the embarassment of a flaming bike before being sprayed with a fire extinguisher!! Disaster of the day was for Andy Driver who crashed on lap 1 at Clearways. Up to that point he had finished every race of the series. This honour now rests with Michael Payne as the sole rider in the series to have finished every race of the championship!
So, the 2009 series comes to an end with a very worthy champion in Mark Lawes. Despite the slightly smaller grids than previous years the quality of racing has been undeniable with Mark Lawes having to ride at new lap-record pace to keep the other riders, and Michael Payne in particular, behind him. Plans are already underway for the 2010 championship.
Race Report - Cadwell Park Rounds 1 & 2
The opening two rounds of the 2009 Buff/ACU British supermono championship took place at Cadwell Park on the 16th and 17th May, where the weather played a significant part.
This is the 25th anniversary of the championship and sees a mix of old and new faces. Pole position in qualifying was taken by the reigning European champion, Mark Lawes (GRC Pami BMW). He was joined on the front row by Australian Michael Payne (Tigcraft Nova 450), the returning Aaron Easter (Tigcraft Rotax) and, new to the series, Dijon Compton (Suzuki 800).
Saturday’s race took place in dry conditions and was a masterclass by Lawes who took the lead from the start and led throughout to win comfortably ahead of a titanic battle between Payne and Compton. Payne finally won it convincingly at the hairpin on the last lap when a desperate passing effort caused Compton to stall his bike and fail to finish his first ever supermono race. This left second place to Payne and 3rd place to returning former champion, Mark George (TGR 426); a deserved reward for his hard ride through traffic from a poor start. Close behind the leading trio were Jonathan Good (Tigcraft Yamaha) and Dave Harnett (KTM Pressfab).
Sunday’s race was strongly influenced by a heavy deluge just before the race which led all riders to tyre their machines with wets. However, on a drying track it was Compton who took the initiative and made amends for his mistake the day before by taking the lead on lap 1 and extending it to a 10 second winning margin at the finish. Payne was denied his second 2nd place on the last lap by a hard-charging Lawes who passed him going into the mountain, and held on to win by 1 second. Following the podium finishers again was Harnett with George less than half a second behind.
The next two rounds of the series follow quickly and take the Buff/ACU championship to Anglesey for the May bank holiday weekend. This will be the first time the supermonos have visited the Welsh circuit where they will be running alonside the Hottrax endurance race series.
Pit Bits
Andrew McCombe experienced his first ride on a mini-mono at Cadwell having blown up his Gallina’s Suzuki engine at Snetterton 2 days before. The 6 foot doctor was in need of medical attention for his knees after climbing off the bike!!
Jeff Claridge was forced to start Sunday’s race from the pit lane after making the school boy error of forgetting to connect his fuel hose! He finished 10th.
Whilst the grid was full of monos in Tigcraft frames, Dave Pearce (the man who is Tigcraft) was not able to make the start of the 2009 series due to the loss of his main sponsor as a result of the credit crisis.
Another victim of the financial situation is reigning British champion Nick Chadwick who was a spectator at the event but without a ride and so unable to defend his title.
Race Report - Anglesey (Coastal) Rounds 3 & 4
Since it’s conception twenty five years ago, this was the first time that the sound of Supermono’s thunderous roar had been heard at the north Wales circuit. Gale force winds and driving rain greeted the riders on Friday for the Hottrax motorsports practice day, but with no former experience of the circuit, most teams used the day for a valuable learning opportunity. Conditions improved for the official start of practice on Saturday, and in dry but blustery conditions it was the reigning European, and current British championship leader Mark Lawes (Pami BMW), that set the early pace with an impressive time of 1;14.738 Michael Payne (Nova 450), Aaron Easter and Perry Goldstein (KTM) completed the front row.
At the start of the scheduled sixteen lap race, Goldstein got caught on the tricky first corner and fell heavily in the pack. The race was immediately red-flagged and the riders reformed on the grid for the now shorter race distance of thirteen laps. As the lights went out it was Lawes and Payne who took the early initiative, with Dijon Compton (MHD Suzuki) slotting in behind. Soon Compton squeezed past Lawes and Payne chased down the Suzuki rider Compton. Lawes realising that the two young chargers where tripping each other up, used his experience and talent to retake the lead in the space of two corners, and powered away comfortable to win the race by 7.991 seconds. Compton held on for second place even with a faulty exhaust, Payne snapping at his heels all the way to the flag. Aaron Easter (Tigcraft Rotax) had a lonely but satisfying run to fourth, with Aria lane (Tigcraft) and Mark Hughes (Tigcraft Honda) completing the top six.
Round four of the championship was run in glorious sunshine and very little breeze on the Sunday. It was to be a day of broken records, dramatic comebacks, with a great race and double champagne celebrations to end a wonderful weekends racing. The atmosphere in the pit lane before the race was electric with tension and expectation. A combination of the weather and all the riders familiarity with the circuit, created a real buzz of excitement from the Supermono community.
It was clear from the start of the 16 lap race that the mission, in the front-runners minds, was that they had to beat Lawes on the powerful and beautiful Team James Pami BMW. Payne and Compton attacked from the start. Compton using the power of the big Suzuki on the straights, Payne aboard the nimble little minimono riding with great courage and conviction through the corners, as Compton and Lawes powered past down the straights, you could almost hear the anguish from Payne, the rear end fighting for grip as he screwed the power on earlier and earlier at the exit of every corner. Compton though had other problems to worry about, not only was Lawes becoming more difficult to pass but the rejuvenated Goldstein was making amends for the previous day’s mistake. A 1;13.574 lap pulled him into the lead battle on lap four. A four way fight was now entertaining the watching crowd. By mid race distance though Compton had another problem with his exhaust and could only watch helplessly as Payne was left to fight with Lawes, eventually finishing fourth. Goldstein, after his initial early pace, struggled to match the consistent laps of the top two, and had to settle for third. With + 0 being shown to Lawes from his pit crew, the multiple European and British champion turned on the style. His last lap was the fastest of the race, a 1;13.239, crossing the line 1.718 seconds in front of the rider from Sydney.
Aaron Easter once again showed his promise with a credible fifth, while Mark Hughes was delighted with another top six finish.
The ACU/Buff British Supermono Championship now moves to Snetterton for the UK round of the European Championship on June 19/20th.
Official timing and results from Anglesey here.
Race Report - Snetterton BSB Round 5
New Leader for Supermono Championship!
Australian Michael Payne (Tigcraft Nova Honda) leads the British Supermono championship after his first victory in an incident packed race at Snetterton.
The British Supermono Championship riders were guests at a combined European championship round held as a support race at the BSB meeting at Snetterton, June 19th-21st. Consequently there was a healthy entry list of over 30 bikes for this race.
Grid positions were decided after the first dry qualifying session on Friday; no-one improved their times during damp second qualifying on Saturday.
Pole position was taken by Mark Lawes (Pami BMW) who was looking to stamp his authority on the series with a phenomenal time of 1.13.998. His closest rival was Mani Kehrman (Pami BMW) on 1.15.248 with Lex Van Dijk (Over Yamaha) in third and Perry Goldstein (KTM) as second “Brit” completing the front row, and both in the 1.16 time bracket. Sadly, a crash by Goldstein at the end of the session left too much damage to repair and he was forced to withdraw, allowing Aaron Easter (Tigcraft Rotax)to move forward and complete the front row. Payne was back on the third row in 11th place after qualifying, complaining of a lack of clear track.
Despite all the showers on Saturday, the weather was more settled on Sunday and as the riders took to the grid for the early Sunday morning start, the track was dry, with just a hint of sunshine. The first casualty of the day was Dijon Compton whose MHD Suzuki developed a terminal misfire on the warm-up lap and he pulled in from the sighting lap. Dutchman Henk From (Pami BMW) was pulled off the grid after the warm up laps with a smoking bike.
From the start it was Lawes who took the lead with Kehrman for close company. Just behind was a small group of Van Dijk, Van Buiten (Ducati), Van de Beek (Ducati) and Claridge (Tigcraft Nova Honda).
As the leaders started their second lap, smoke was seen coming from Lawes bike and very quickly black flags were put out to call him in. Perhaps because of the intensity of the racing, Lawes claims he did not see the flags, until he eventually came in on lap 7. As he and Kehrman had pulled a comfortable gap on the chasing pack by this stage, this left the German rider with a comfortable advantage which he took to the finish.
Van Buiten fell foul of the chicane on lap 2, whilst Claridge was forced to pull out on lap 5 with a worsening misfire. Payne meanwhile was progressing through the field and joined this chasing group just as Claridge was forced to leave it. He soon passed Van de Beek and set about chasing down Van Dijk. Over the next few laps there was almost nothing between these two riders until finally on lap 10, Payne made his move going into Riches and passed the Dutchman to secure second place in the race (but first in the British championship), which he held all the way to the chequered flag. Aaron Easter was 5th with Jon Good 6th, thus taking 2nd and 3rd respectively in the British series.
This puts Payne at the front of the British championship with 97 points, just 2 ahead of Lawes. Compton still holds third but Easter and Porter are both within just a few points. The next round takes place at the classic Grand Prix circuit at Brands Hatch on the 24th and 25th of July.
Official timing and results available here.
Race Report - Brands Hatch GP Rounds 6 & 7
Mark Lawes riding the Team James Pami BMW, returned to his winning ways after another dominant display from the rider from Essex. In dry and almost perfect racing conditions Lawes, produced a scintillating lap in qualifying to claim pole position, closely followed by Michael Payne (Nova 450), Aaron Easter (Tigcraft Rotax 640), and John Good on board the Tigcraft Yamaha 680 completing the front row.
The fine weather continued for the scheduled ten lap race around the glorious Brands hatch GP circuit, one of the most impressive race tracks in world motorsport. When the red lights went out, it was Good on the big Yamaha finding an advantage from his inside front row start who led the way into paddock hill bend for the first time. The consistently fast starting Jeff Claridge (Nova 450) came alongside Good into Druids to challenge for the lead, as did Payne, George, Lawes and Easter! These six riders continued to swap places for the first lap, then the experience and speed of Lawes started to show as he slowly pulled away from his pursuers. Each lap Lawes was able to pull a small advantage on the chasing trio of Payne, Good and George, to win by a seemingly comfortable margin of seven seconds. In contrast, the battle for second was a race long dogfight and was only concluded by Good trying a little too hard on the final corner of the last lap and high-siding out of the race and a possible podium place. These positions where taken by Payne, who had now fallen to second in the championship behind Lawes, and George who was pleasantly surprised by his third place finish.
Sunday’s ten lap race was run in near identical conditions to the previous day, and the start was de ja vu for many riders. Once again Good and Claridge led the way, with the ever present Lawes and Payne shadowing their every move. And, as before, Lawes, always keen to lead from the front, put in the fastest lap of the race on lap two, and established a small lead. However, all was not well with the Pami BMW. A slight intermittent mis-fire was slowing the Team James machine, and within three laps the young Australian Payne had caught and passed the frustrated Lawes. For the remaining laps these two produced a fantastic race for the large Bemsee/MRO crowd. With a last ditch attempt, Lawes used all his racing experience to edge out Payne on the line, just 0.036 seconds the splitting them as they took the chequered flag. George had a lonely race for third, as both Good and series debutant Andrew Sennett (Rotax Pami) both failed to finish after showing a lot of speed in the early laps.
Lawes now leads the British Championship by eight points from Payne. The next round of this enthralling series will be run with the European Supermono series at the BSB round at Cadwell Park August 29/30th.
Official results and times available here.
Race Report - Cadwell Park BSB Round 8
For the second time this year, the combined European and British Supermono Championships where held as a support race to the MCE BSB race calendar. The first of two qualifying sessions were held in fine and dry conditions. Many of the European riders had never experienced the twisty Lincolnshire circuit before, but this did not stop the current euro series leader Manfred Kehrmann, (BMW Pami GRC) setting the early pace. Michael Payne (Tigcraft Nova 450) was close behind, but it was the young English rider, Aaron Easter (Tigcraft Rotax) that put in a scintillating last lap to put his nimble Rotax on provisional pole. One notable exception from the time sheets was current British series leader, and reigning European champion Mark Lawes, (BMW Pami GRC), who suffered his first significant engine failure in four years.
The early morning second qualifying practice was held in cooler conditions on the Sunday, but the flying Kehrmann was using his vast experience to great use, and as the session drew to a close he snatched pole position from Easter by 0.0391 of a second with a time of 1;38.053. Payne was alongside them on the front row, with Lawes now using his team-mates spare engine, in fourth. Another German Stefan Meiners, (Happeck Yamaha 450), with Lex Van Dijk (Over Yamaha 782) making up the second row.
The scheduled 12 lap race was held in fine, warm conditions in front of a large Sunday afternoon crowd. Cadwell’s first corner awaited, and it was Van Dijk aboard the Japanese built “Over” that led them up the hill on the first lap. The elevation somewhat distracted the rider from Amsterdam, and he was swiftly overtaken by Payne and Lawes.
As so often been the case in the UK series in 2009, Lawes allowed the young Australian Payne to lead the first lap, then he took control at the start of lap two. On lap three he put in his fastest lap, and was never troubled for the remainder of the race. Another perfect example of what a hugely talented rider can achieve on a beautifully prepared machine.
Behind the leader things where not so simple, Easter had overtaken Van Dijk; Kehrmann after a poor start, made steady progress from fifth, and Meiners, Henk From (BMW PAMI GRC), and Jonathan Good were having a battle royal for 5th place. Just behind this group, Mark Hughes (Tigcraft Honda) and Ivan Porter (Porter 660) started on a race long duel, Hughes eventually coming out on top. In the closing stages Porter had to fend off the attentions of not only Perry Goldstein (KTM), but Libor Kemenicky (Mali Jawa) and Evert Van De Beek on the stunning Ducati Supermono. These four riders would be covered by 0.2 of a second at the chequered flag.
Behind the leader, Kehrmann had posted the fastest lap of the race (1;37.867) to catch Payne on the line but just missed out on second place by 0.059 of a second. His third place in the race (but first European) increases his lead in the European series by ten points from Van Dijk who held onto fifth place (second European) behind the struggling Easter on a rear tyre that had lost grip and a slipping clutch. Meiners held onto sixth place. In the British series, Lawes extends his championship lead to 13 points over Payne, with Easter a distant third place.
Official results available here.
Race Report - Snetterton Rounds 9 and 10
It was business as usual for Mark Lawes and Michael Payne as they continue their battle for the British Supermono title. With Lawes on his Pami BMW taking a brace of wins at the Norfolk circuit, and Payne on his Tigcraft Nova Honda 450 a pair of seconds, Lawes now has his fingertips on the title with only 2 races remaining at the final round at Brands Hatch at the end of the month.
The only slight change to the usual running order was the pole position taken by Payne in a fine qualifying session on the Saturday morning. Lawes took second place with Claridge (Tigcraft Nova Honda) in third and Porter on his homemade 660 completing the front row.
Saturday’s race started in bright sunshine with Lawes taking the holeshot to lead the fast starting Claridge and pole sitter, Payne. However, Claridge was not to be denied his moment and took the lead early on the second lap. This he held for one lap before Lawes came past with Payne in tow. These three held these respective positions to the finish with small but increasing gaps between them.
Just behind this trio was the closest battle of the day with Good (Tigcraft Yamaha), Porter and Goldstein (Tigcraft Rotax) locked in a 3-way dice, and former champion Mark George holding station a short way behind. As the laps passed these three passed and re-passed each other allowing George to slowly creep up to them. Some brave passing saw Porter take the laurels ahead of Good, with George taking advantage of their battling to pass Goldstein. An amazing ride by Aaron Easter starting from pit-lane and half a lap down saw him take eighth, just behind Goldstein! The race was noteworthy for being the first supermono race in many years in which the whole starting grid made it through to the finish!
Sunday’s race started with a bit more drama. The Supermonos followed the sidecar race and confusion about a clean-up operation for some spilt oil meant 4 riders did not make the official start procedure. These four riders were required to start from the back of the grid and included title contender Payne, and Claridge, leaving the front row a bit thin! The second row was already a bit thin with the absence of John Good who had crashed heavily in morning warm-up and was transferred to Norfolk and Norwich Hospital with broken ribs.
Consequently, Lawes took the lead from the first corner and was never headed. Payne and Claridge made a phenomenal charge from their lowly start position and had reached the sharp end of the field by the end of the first lap. They continued to circulate in 2nd and 3rd places until the finish to repeat Saturdays podium result. Just behind these three, the closest race on track was another 4-way tussle between Easter, Porter, George and Goldstein. Goldstein sadly succumbed to mechanical failure and did not finish, but Easter’s much better start saw him win this battle to take 4th ahead of Porter and George respectively. Andrew McCombe followed this trio home on his Gallina which had not made the start of Saturday’s race because of a mechanical problem that was repaired overnight.
Lawes now leads Payne by 23 points and can wrap up the championship in the first race of the final round at the Brands Hatch Indie circuit on Saturday and Sunday 26th and 27th September.
Pit Bits
Man of the meeting award would have to be a toss up between Andy Driver who rode both races with a badly torn rotator cuff in his left shoulder following a fall at Cadwell the previous weekend and is the only 100% finisher apart from Michael Payne, or, Martin Jarvis, who has had almost no sleep in the last 7 days in an effort to get his bike rebuilt for this round following an engine blow up at the Cadwell race last weekend. He managed to finish Saturday’s race but suffered yet another engine failure on Sunday!
Official timing and results available here.