Progression For Bike Devil Racing

Bennetts British Superbikes

It was a challenging weekend for the Bike Devil Racing team at the opening round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Donington Park this weekend. The team made a last-minute decision to switch to Kawasaki ZX-10RR and their rider Gino Rea only had one day testing on the bike before this weekend. He retired from the opening race, gained a 19th and strong 12th in the other two races.

The team had to spend the majority of this weekend using it as a test to find a good set-up on the bike and to get some track time under their belt. After a few problems earlier on in the practice sessions, Gino was only able to qualify in 25th place.

He got a great start and was working his way up through the field when he was forced to retire from a points-scoring position with a technical problem. He was placed in 19th place on the grid for race two, and he was locked in a tight battle throughout the race and finished the 26-lap race in 19th.

He was 19th on the grid again for the final race of the day, and the team made some big changes between the races which allowed Gino to make some great progress. He worked hard throughout the race and kept working his way up through the pack to finish in a very creditable 12th place.

Gino: 

“It was a really testing weekend, but we didn’t give up, and we are rewarded with a great finish. We didn’t get to test properly before the race weekend, and we missed FP1 and race 1 with a technical issue, so we used the races on Sunday to learn about the bike.

We made a change for race two, which is always difficult because it risks changing things going into a race. We went the right way through, and it made the bike so much more manageable and after a couple of laps adapting to the new set-up, I was able to actually come through the field. I almost got passed Peter Hickman on the final lap for 11th but didn’t quite manage it, so we ended up 12th, scoring our first points.

I had a very consistent race pace, and we’ve learnt a lot about the bike, so it’s nice to finish the weekend on a positive note. I want to thank everyone on my side of the Bike Devil garage for the hard work over the weekend, it was tough, but we got there in the end.”

Quattro Group British Super sport

It was a very mixed weekend for the two British Super sport riders on the MV Agusta, Rob Hartog and Jamie Perrin. Rob made great progress through the weekend and secured a 10th in race one and a brilliant sixth in the main race. Jamie sadly had a weekend to forget and was hindered with problems all weekend and was unable to secure any results.

Rob qualified 15th on the grid for the opening Super sport race on Saturday, he got a good start and made up some places on the opening lap. He was locked in a few tight battles for positions and was fighting in the race with a couple of the GP2 riders. He continued to push hard to secure 10th place at the end of the 20-lap race.

For race two Rob was placed in 20th place on the grid and had a lot of work to do to get through the fiercely competitive pack. He got a great start and was 11th Super sport rider after the opening lap, and he was soon working his way up through the field. He was setting some super consistent lap times and pushed through to a fantastic sixth at the end of the 23 laps.

Rob: 

 “It was definitely a good end to the weekend and a great result in the second race. We have made a lot of progression over the three days, and on Saturday I wasn’t too happy, but I think we made up for it in race two. We are learning more and more, and I am learning about the bike and finding the right setting for me.

We are just getting started as on a race weekend you can see the full potential of the bike and where you are at. I’m very happy with the progression, and I’d like to thank the team for their hard work.

Snetterton might be good for me as it is more like a European style track and I am looking forward to going there and getting started again.”

Jamie:

 “It was the hardest weekend I’ve had at racing. We were plagued with mechanical problems all weekend. We will go away and get everything fixed before Snetterton, and my #bsbrestart will start there in a couple of weeks.”

Dave Tyson – Team Owner:

 “The first round of the year was always going to be tough after a long lay-up and also a short period of time to get the Superbike ready. The team worked hard all weekend, and we got some good results from our long hours.

Gino built up well over the weekend and got the bike more to his liking and also improved his times in every session. We have to remember even though this is a proven bike, it still needs to be adjusted to his style and feel. 12th and nearly 11th in the third race showed the improvements, and the pace with can take to Snetterton.

Rob again had a similar weekend building up and his pace improved each session. A 6th was a great achievement and means we go to Snetterton with a positive mind. Unfortunately, Jamie had a very difficult weekend with technical problems. However, we have regrouped and have a plan for round two, I am sure we will see him up the sharp end.”