Honda riders Stuart Easton, Karl Harris and Glen Richards had all won at Oulton in their Supersport careers, whilst the two most experienced Superbike men, Chris Walker and Michael Rutter (each now with Yamaha), had past BSB successes at Oulton in the bag. And qualifying duly saw a mix of different bikes at the front of the field.

Brands winner Camier took the first BSB pole position of his career with the Airwaves Yamaha. Leon and team-mate James Ellison had now moved on to WSB-spec. R1 machines from the standard bikes they’d had for round one. James would start from sixth, split from Leon by Honda, Suzuki and Kawasaki racers. The Hydrex Honda pair led the pursuit of Camier, with Easton second, then Harris. The Worx Crescent Suzuki of Guintoli was fourth.

In fifth place was Simon Andrews of the MSS Colchester team, this being the best grid slot for a Kawasaki since early 2006. Simon would be racing with an injured shoulder, and he also had to do without electronics on his ZX. Winners of seven races in 2008, the HM Plant Honda outfit had their first bike seventh here, with Richards on board. Joining him in the team this time was Joshua Brookes, his visa problems now sorted out, and he would being starting tenth.

Relentless Suzuki rider Ian Lowry would start eighth, followed by Walker on the Motorpoint/Henderson Yamaha, and after Brookes was eleventh man Jason O’Halloran, for SMT Honda. Gary Mason, in twelfth, was again the first man in the Cup class, with his Quay Garage Honda. On the fourth row of the grid were Jon Kirkham (Lloyds British Yamaha), Tristan Palmer and John Laverty (both Buildbase Kawasaki) and Atsushi Watanabe for Relentless.

Race one was wet in name, and this in fact meant that there was a wide dry line and the riders were running with slick tyres. Easton led initially, although coming under attack from Harris along the Lakeside straight. Camier was third, fending off the advances of Richards at the right-left-right Hizzys chicane. Ellison, Andrews and Guintoli followed, with the latter pair soon to change places. Then came Kirkham, Walker, Lowry, O’Halloran, Brookes, Mason, David Johnson, Palmer, Julien da Costa, Laverty and Kenny Gilbertson. Rutter went into the pits after just one lap.

The lead changed when Harris overtook Easton at the final right-handed Lodge Corner, but the race was red flagged at this stage due to an accident involving Laverty. So soon into proceedings, this meant that the race would be restarted from zero and with the original grid positions. Laverty would be absent, but it meant Rutter could rejoin. This time, Richards was also past Camier off the start, as Guintoli was quick to take fifth away from Andrews. Hydrex riders Easton and Harris led the way again.

Shell Oils Corner is a banked right-hand hairpin which follows the fast drag along Lakeside and through the left-hand Island Bend. Here was where Camier overtook Richards on the inside, pushing him wide enough so that Andrews also got ahead of the Honda. Glen would then lose out to Guintoli and come under attack from Ellison at Lodge. Behind them were Walker, Brookes, Kirkham, Mason, Lowry, O’Halloran, da Costa, Martin Jessopp and Palmer.

Looking for his first BSB win, and on probably his best track, Harris took over the lead from Easton on the inside into Lodge. Andrews went into third at the first left-hander, the downhill Cascades, but Camier retook the place at Shell. Guintoli, Richards and Ellison followed, as the leading seven moved clear of the rest. Behind Walker and Brookes, the shuffle had seen Mason pass Kirkham and Lowry pass them both.

There was more action to come. Camier overtook Easton for second at Lodge; and Guintoli overtook Andrews at Shell. Now Harris and Camier started to pull away, leaving the battle for third. Sylvain had to sit up in an attempt on Stuart at Hizzys, but he got by at Lodge. Andrews’ good form here went to waste when he had a lowside crash at the left-right-left Brittens chicane.

Camier was doing some fast motoring, and this saw him go through inside Harris at the entrance to Cascades, and take the lead. It also saw him pull out a margin over the Honda man, and in the latter stages he was unchallenged as he took the win. The next three, led by Harris, would circulate together now, with Richards and Ellison dropping back behind Guintoli and Easton. Sylvain had a slide at the first, right-handed Old Hall Corner, and it turned into a near highside. He lost third to Easton in the process.

Harris seemed slightly safer in second as the two behind him contested third. Easton reasserted himself as they swapped positions one way and then back again through Lodge and up Deer Leap. Guintoli took the place in another move at Lodge, but on the last lap was under serious threat from the Scot. The Honda was sliding around on the brakes into Hizzys, but Easton did not manage to make the pass. With Harris managing faster lap times later in the race, these three finished in unchanged order.

Ellison had got fifth from Richards towards the end, with Lowry seventh. O’Halloran had made quite a bit of progress for eighth at the flag, and both Mason (even with brake problems) and Brookes had got by Walker for ninth and tenth. These three were followed by da Costa, Kirkham, Watanabe, Palmer, Jessopp, Rutter, Peter Hickman, Tom Tunstall and Gilbertson.

There were fully dry conditions when it came time for race two, and again Hydrex Honda twins Easton and Harris led away. Richards jumped from seventh to third, only to lose one place to Andrews, and then another to Camier at Shell Oils hairpin. Walker was into sixth, and Brookes was quick to take seventh from Ellison. Then followed Lowry, Guintoli, Kirkham, O’Halloran, da Costa, Mason, Watanabe, Johnson and Palmer.

The classic overtaking manoeuvre for Oulton, on the inside at Lodge, was used by Harris on Easton for another spell in the lead. Behind them, Andrews and Camier battled for position in the same corner. Even early on the top five started to make a break from the main pack, and Ellison passed Walker for sixth as he tried to go after them. Easton had gone back in front, but sadly for him there would be no podium result at Oulton - coming out of the Druids right-hander, he had to pull up and signal a mechanical problem, and his day ended in the pits. Palmer also pulled out soon after.

The lead group now consisted of Harris, Camier, Andrews and Richards, and as the leading pair pulled away from the other two, Leon overtook Karl at Lodge. Camier was again the fastest man and would be starting to clear off soon enough. Ellison joined the third place contest, behind Andrews and Richards. Meanwhile, Lowry and Guintoli had both got past Walker and Brookes. Sylvain would close on Ian and move through into sixth before long.

Camier left Harris to a fairly solitary race in second, but third was hotly contested. Richards went by Andrews on the inside at Old Hall, but the reverse was true at Cascades, although Simon went wide and so Glen did get in front. There was another change as the Kawasaki went ahead again into Hizzys. Ellison was next to pass Richards, and indeed James would soon take third from Andrews on the inside into Hizzys.

From contesting third place, which would have been the best result for a Kawasaki since Richards took that result at Cadwell Park in August 2005, now Andrews hit trouble. He seemed to miss a gear at Old Hall, where both Richards and Guintoli went past, and after that he would slip behind both Lowry and Mason, with Brookes stopping in the pits. So this now left a race for third between Ellison, Richards and Guintoli, with the French rider trailing a loose sensor or onboard camera from the pillion of the Suzuki.

Guintoli passed Richards on his left through Island Bend, and indeed the same section of the track saw his successful move on Ellison to take third with a couple of laps still to run. James stayed on the rear of Sylvain’s Suzuki, with Glen tagging on, but to the flag the first five now remained unchanged. And indeed they were in the same order as they’d finished race one, although without Easton among them. Lowry came home next after Richards, again as earlier on. Mason was the Cup winner again, in seventh, heading Andrews, Walker, O’Halloran, Kirkham, Watanabe, Jessopp, Johnson, Hickman, Tunstall, Aaron Zanotti and Alastair Fagan. Rutter joined the list of non-finishers this time after a weekend to forget.

Fifth in the 2008 BSB championship table, but the top man of those still remaining, Leon Camier took his first double win in the series at Oulton; and in his hands the Airwaves Yamaha looks like the best bike in the field - at this stage. From four races, Leon has won three, and the last time there were more than three Yamaha wins in a BSB season was back in 1998. For Rob McElnea, whose team has run Yamaha machinery right through since they set the pace in 1996-98, it must not be too much fun to see GSE/Airwaves switch from Ducati and receive such competitive bikes.

After Camier, Karl Harris had another good day at Oulton. Other than his four Supersport wins there, his best BSB results in the 2002 and 2005-07 seasons were also at this circuit, as well as his only pole position. He has now been second five times at Oulton in BSB, and will no doubt be looking for his first win next time here, if not before. It was a good meeting for Simon Andrews in every way except for results, whilst Glen Richards had the distinction of getting beyond 1000 points scored in BSB racing. Who will be on the scoreboard next time?

Standings after four races: Camier 88; Guintoli 77; Richards 52; Harris 50; Ellison 44; Easton 42; Mason 33; O’Halloran 26; Walker, Andrews and Lowry 22.

View a Printer Friendly version of this Story.

Bookmark or share this story with:

• Digg
• Delicious
• Facebook
• Reddit
• Stumbleupon

Related Articles:

• Sylvain Guintoli is first time BSB race winner