Airwaves Yamaha on top at Donington Park
23.05.09
The third round of the British Superbike Championship got underway at Donington Park today where the Airwaves Yamaha pairing of Leon Camier and James Ellison finished the day 1st and 2nd.
In the morning's 50 minute practice session, Leon and James got their first taste of the updated Airwaves Yamaha YZF-R1. Completing a total of 24 laps, Leon, the current Championship leader, finished fastest by 0.720s. Teammate James finished 10th after a technical issue reduced his time out on track. In the second session both riders worked hard to reduce their lap times. Leon's fastest time, 1:31.977 secured him the top spot once again, coming on lap 11 of an eventual 22. James' best time, 1:32.334 ensured he finished the day 2nd fastest.
Commenting after practice Leon said, "Before this weekend I really wasn't too sure what to expect or how competitive we would be, but I'm very happy with our progress so far. The new Yamaha engine has made a huge difference and lap by lap we're improving, which is encouraging. We made a few changes to the chassis between sessions which helped to reduce our times, but we'll be looking to make more improvements ahead of qualifying tomorrow."
Following practice James commented, "This morning's session wasn't great for us as we only completed a handful of laps but I had enough time on track to get a feel for the new engine which is fantastic! The second session went a lot better so I'm a happy man. I'm struggling slightly in the middle-section so we'll be looking at ways to improve and get the chassis dialled in to get us closer to the top spot tomorrow."
Qualifying for the third round of the British Superbike Championship commences tomorrow, Sunday 24th May at 1515.