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Stunning win to end season for Clark & TeamArriving at Oulton Park for the final round of the 2009 Relentless British 125cc Championship didn’t inspire a large amount of confidence in Clark for a good weekends racing as the circuit had never been kind to him in the previous years with some of the most unusual machine failures ever known to man, but hoping positive thoughts could out-weigh the demons of Oulton Park Pete and the Banks Racing team set out to prove a point this weekend, which they did in fine style recording their second British Championship victory of the year! Autumn had definitely arrived and it was a cool but dry Friday for free practice with Brian wasting no time getting on the pace posting the third & fourth fastest times in the two sessions. With a few minor adjustments the team hoped that qualifying would be the same, no such look though as heavy overnight rain meant the 9am Saturday morning session for first qualifying would be a very wet affair. Riding cautiously as it appeared that the weather would improve for final qualifying Clark slowly improved his time through the session albeit struggling to get any feedback from his bike. With only minutes of the session left he was down in 13th position and tried to push past the lack of bike feeling to post a reasonable time should the heavens re-open later in the day but as he entered the final right in the ‘Knickerbrook Chicane’ the front wheel ‘tucked’ skittling him into the gravel! Disgusted and annoyed Clark finished the session 13th. ‘The whole session I couldn’t get any feel from the bike and whether that was down to the cold conditions or the set-up I don’t know but I just tried to bridge the gap to the front guys and away she went without a warning. Luckily it wasn’t a big crash and we’ll be ready for this afternoon but I am incredibly disappointed at that.’ With conditions dry, bike repaired and rider calmer the final qualifying session got underway, the session had been reduced in time due to an earlier stoppage in the day so Clark opted to stay out for the duration to hope to get some clear laps. From the off he was back on the pace and by mid- session was running second to Guiver who had been fastest by more than a second all weekend but now his advantage was down to 0.8 seconds, inspired by this Clark pushed on and with as he crossed the line to leave only his final lap the gap was now 0.4 seconds. Knowing he needed a little more Brian just looked to get one more clean clear lap. Fastest in the first sector, then fastest in the second sector the team waited with baited breath wondering if he could hold it together for pole and although he caught a group of slower riders into the final turn he did it surpassing Guivers pole time by 0.4seconds. With the chequered flag already out the team were overjoyed but only for it to be cut short with Guiver re-taking pole spot by less than 0.2 seconds leaving Clark and the team second on the grid for Sunday’s race. ‘Our first front row of the year is a good feeling and as we are huge 1.3 seconds faster than the third placed guy hopefully we can convert it tomorrow with a good race result. There were a few places that I know I can improve on but that’s good enough and I’ll just look to the race and hopefully go one better.’ Stated a much calmer than this morning Brian. Race day and the turbulent weather returned. Morning warm up was a wash out but after then the weather improved slowly and the strong winds seemed to keep the rain at bay. As they lined up for the race Clark was hoping not to have a repeat performance of his Silverstone start which saw him drop to mid teens by turn one, that wasn’t the case today and after a firm first lap he held second position behind Taylor McKenzie who had had a blistering start. Clark made quick work of Taylor as he wanted to be out at the front and to pull away if possible but Guiver had different ideas and block passed Clark into the final turn ‘Lodge’ corner to lead on the second lap. Settling into a rhythm Clark was passed by Deane Brown on the fourth lap relegating him to third but with a small gap back to the next group he was comfortable to sit and watch the leading two and see where they were at their best. By lap 8 it was still the same at the front but Clark could see from his pit board signals that the following pack were starting to tip toe closer meaning it was time to try and bridge the gap to Guiver and up the pace, slicing past Brown Clark set about catching Rob and within a lap was 0.077 seconds off his tail having already showed him his intentions. Guiver looked to up his pace but Clark got stronger drive out of the ‘Cascades’ left hander onto the lower straight and holding a tight line into the fifth gear left hander of ‘Island bend’ he moved into the lead where he held strong for the remaining two laps to cross the line first and record his second win of the year! ‘That was a good race and the win is excellent, especially here. As soon as I got a decent start I knew we could be somewhere near today. Rob was always going to be the man out at the front but I was confident I could run with him and beyond if need be. Deane coming through was a surprise to me though but he rode really well and the move he put on me to pass was first class, I’d of been proud to have done it! Obviously this is a great end to the year and apart from the broken arm which caused us to miss the two first rounds we’ve never been far off all season. I plan to be back next year with the Banks Racing team with a stronger package and we will definitely be lifting the crown in 2010! I would like to thank everyone who has helped throughout the year and hopefully the four podiums we’ve had this season have brought everyone involved some enjoyment, it has been hard throughout financially and to all of those people who have repeatedly managed to help us I am eternally grateful. Fourth overall is a great achievement when you consider the level of equipment being used in this championship and Pete’s meticulous preparation is a big factor in bridging that gap so he should be proud of the machine he has supplied me all year.’ If you missed the final round Television highlights will be shown on British Eurosport on Saturday 17th October 6.00-7.00pm. As the end of season break begins work is already underway to ensure Brian and Banks Racing can be more competitive in 2010, if you’ve enjoyed following their progress this year and want to get more involved contact them at your convenience to find out more information. Chris Parry is at cp@parrisprint.co.uk
or 07770688559
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© Brian Clark 2010 |
