James Westmoreland secured Centurion Racing their first British Supersport podium this weekend at round five of the Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport round at Snetterton circuit. Westmoreland grabbed a stunning third place after running with the leaders throughout the 18-lap race and passing experienced rider Hudson Kennaugh in the closing stages, shortly before the race was red-flagged due to an accident.

Young Westmoreland who celebrates his 20th Birthday next week gained an early Birthday present at the super fast Norfolk track. Running consistently strong throughout the weekend it was looking likely that Westy would be able to get on the podium. Not even half way through the season and the youngster has got to grips with his Honda 600 and is now eager to get similar results at the remaining rounds of the series.
 
Westy qualified in a healthy fifth position and missed second qualifying late in the afternoon on Saturday due to the heavy rain, the team opted out as the circuit was un-ride-able and no-one would improve on the dry qualifying times that were set in the morning. His team-mate Dan Cooper could only manage to qualify in 18th place in the fiercely competitive series.
 
Westy gained a fantastic start and was away with the leading pack, Glen Richards, Steve Plater and Hudson Kennaugh. As they bridged a huge gap on the rest of the field Westy was able to stay with the front runners and made a clean pass on Kennaugh the South African on lap 12 at the bottom of the fast Revett Straight into the Esses.

It was perfect timing from Westy as the race was red flagged just one lap later after an accident at Russell Corner.
 
A delighted Westy commented “I’m so pleased that I managed to get onto the podium, not just for myself but for the whole Centurion Racing Team who have worked so hard and kept their faith in me for the last couple of years and it’s nice to be able to repay them. I was running well all weekend and I knew if I got a good start I could run with the front runners and push for a podium. I hope this won’t be a one off and that I can continue running at this end of the pack at the future races. I’d just like to say a big thanks to all the people that have helped me get here.”

From 12 to 4th … what an eventful race.  Check out Westy blog, click here

Not only was the weather stunning at Brands Hatch but as were the results from the Centurion Racing team. James Westmoreland and Dan Cooper secured two fantastic results in the rescheduled Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Championship at Brands Hatch, taking a fourth and 11th place respectively.

Having already qualified at the beginning of April, before the race was abandoned due to heavy snow, the Centurion duo had put their Honda’s in 12th, Westy and 20th, Cooper on the grid. The race initially was the opening round of the Championship and the two were struggling to get to grips with their new Pirelli tyres and therefore were unable to place themselves higher on the starting grid.

In the two hot practice sessions on Saturday they were flying and were setting some extremely fast lap times with Westy setting the third quickest time in the second practice session and Cooper in sixth, it was looking likely that they would be able to make the best of their low qualifying positions.

In an action packed race, which saw the safety car deployed on two occasions they were able to make the most of the 18-lap battle and score two solid results for the Centurion Racing team. The safety car was despatched on the first lap after two separate crashes involving various riders at Paddock Hill and also Druids corner. The riders lined up in formation waiting for the lights on the car to be turned off. 

The race got underway again on lap three and Westy was through to 12th on lap four and Cooper had slipped back to 18th place. Westy was making huge progress through the pack and was up to seventh by lap nine with Cooper in 17th position. The safety car was once again called out on lap 11 when Chris Martin and Aaron Walker crashed out in two different  incidents. Cooper was making the most of the falling riders in front of him and he was eagerly pushing his way through the pack and getting up to 13th by lap 14 and was eyeing up a top ten finish. He was locked in a tight battle with Andy Weymouth and Paul Young for ninth place and only 0.2 split the trio as they reached the chequered flag where he gained 11th. Westy pushed hard and made some unbelievable passing manoeuvres around the outside of Clearways and the outside of Paddock Hill, both times pulling the moves off and making tidy passes on Craig Fitzpatrick and BJ Toal, sealing him a well earned fourth position.

James Westmoreland was delighted with his result saying “I’m so pleased for the team that we have managed to achieve what we did today. It’s been a long time coming, I gained a fourth place last year at Thruxton and it’s a really nice feeling being there again. I’m eager for these results to carry on for the rest of the season and there should be no reasons why I can’t make that happen. I love Donington Park and it would be good to be fighting at the front end again there. I really enjoyed the scrap and thanks again to all the guys at Centurion Racing for working so hard.”

Dan Cooper commented “Considering my poor qualifying position it’s great to be pushing with the boys and fighting for a top ten position. We’d not had much track time when we came here in April and it was taking me a little while to get used to the new tyres and dusting up on my riding skills again. I was running really well in practice here and it was a shame we’d already qualified as I think I would have got an even better result if I’d not started from 20th on the grid. I’m really pleased for the team as they’ve all been working really hard and it would be good to continue this into the next races.”

General Manager/Team Owner Paul Rees said “Westy and Dan pushed hard this weekend knowing that they had to salvage a result from the qualifying positions they attained in April.  Some good clean ’scraps’ were had on the track as they moved there way through the pack. Exciting to watch them both out there and there will be many more of those results coming our way with the new improvements to the bikes that the engineers are working so hard at.  Gary Stubbington (Race Manager) and myself would like to thank all the support and messages received from the people who follow us as a team, and this is what it is all about, team work. Congratulations to all”.
Race Result

Hudson Kennaugh           Yamaha

Glen Richards                 Triumph

Steve Brogan                  Honda

James Westmoreland      Centurion Racing Honda

BJ Toal                          Yamaha

Craig Fitzpatrick              Yamaha

Ian Hutchinson               Yamaha

Marty Nutt                      Yamaha

Andy Weymouth             Yamaha

Paul Young                    Triumph

Dan Cooper                   Centurion Racing Honda

Championship Positions

1          Richards              65

2          Kennaugh            58

3          Brogan                52

9th        Westmoreland     19

12th      Cooper               14
-END-

2008 Races  (see calendar or above rounds for further info)

Round 4 -        24th - 26th May - Donington Park, Leics

Round 5 -        13th - 15th June - Snetterton, Norfolk

Round 6 -        27th - 29th June - Mallory Park

Round 7 -        18th - 20th July - Oulton Park, Cheshire

Round 8 -        8th - 10th August - Knockhill, Fife

Round 9 -        23rd - 25th August - Cadwell Park, Lincs

Round 10 -      12th - 14th September - Croft, North Yorkshire

Round 11 -      26th - 28th September, Silverstone, Northants

Round 12 -      10th - 12th October - Brands Hatch Indy, Kent
-END-
 
Carly Rathmell
Freelance Sports PR 

Centurion Racing secured a positive result at Oulton Park this weekend, when riders Dan Cooper and James Westmoreland gained a seventh and eleventh place respectively in the Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Championship. This was 20-year-old Dan Cooper’s best result to date in the tough 600 Class. After dislocating his shoulder during first qualifying this was a fantastic result from the youngster. Westmoreland also improved from the 15th position that he achieved at Thruxton a couple of weeks ago and obtained a healthy points scoring position.
 
The Centurion team were missing a rider at Oulton Park, Dennis Hobbs, after the incident at Thruxton involving James Webb, Hobbs is currently seeing specialists regarding an operation on his shoulder, which he hurt during the crash and as yet it is not known when he will return to racing.

James Westmoreland qualified in eighth position on the Centurion Honda and was unable to gain a good start in the 12-lap re-start and was down in 14th place after the opening lap. After opted for an intermediate front tyre the 19-year-old from Hull struggled for grip throughout the race forcing him to make small mistakes and dropping him places. He said “I’m really disappointed with my result today; I was hoping that I would be able to run within the top eight and get a good result. With the drying weather conditions I choose to run an intermediate front tyre and I struggled with it for most of the race. I also out-braked myself at Knickerbrook which obviously lost vital seconds and a couple of places. It was a shame as I was running really good times with would have put me nearer the top end. I had an engine problem in morning warm up and therefore had to use the second engine from my other bike which was slightly different. Hopefully things will change for the better at Brands at the weekend.”

Team Manager Gary Stubbington commented “It’s been a good weekend for the boys in general despite some minor problems that cropped up. Both have scored points in the Championship and that’s the main priority. After Thruxton we needed a little bit of a confidence boost and that was just the thing. Dan Cooper rode an exceptional race despite his injured shoulders; it would be nice to be able to gain similar results to those at the remaining races. We are still waiting to hear from Dennis and his situation but the team would like to wish him well and hope to see him back out on our bikes soon.”

General Manager Paul Rees, was delighted with the results commenting, “Especially after the engine problems we had.  The engineers worked extremely hard and fast to enable the bikes to be on the circuits both at Thruxton and here at Oulton.  Dan had to grit his teeth and ride through the pain in order to gain such an important position at this stage of the competition.  It was a shame Westy out-braked himself at Knickerbrook though, as he was riding strong and this obviously lost him time and places. He did well to come in at eleventh position and gain some points.  However, a good weekend was had and we are looking forward to the short visit back to Brands Hatch this coming weekend. The Centurion teamwork in the paddock was again exceptional, so a huge thanks go to the whole team for their efforts.”

The organisers of Brands Hatch, have abandoned today’s (Sunday) race meeting, due to the snowy conditions.  They are, however, pleased to announce a re-scheduled date for 10/11 May.  This is a BMCRC meet, that will incorporate BSB races.

Tickets, for the weekend and race day will be valid for the re-scheduled meet, so hold on to them.  All grid positions will remain the same, as well as the racing programme.  See below for full details …

PRESS RELEASE :  Brands Hatch organisers

Extensive snowfalls at Brands Hatch this morning have caused the opening round of the Bennetts British Superbike championship to be abandoned.   At 11.15am Sunday morning Jonathan Palmer, Chief Executive of MotorSport Vision, the owner of Brands Hatch, announced that following a review of circuit conditions and the latest forecast, the meeting would be cancelled for the day.

“It is bitterly disappointing for all the fans who have come and of course for all the teams and organisations including the Brands Hatch team who have put so much into this weekend”, said Palmer.  “Apart from the inability to put on the great show fans expect from BSB, safety is our number one priority and this must not be compromised”.

“I have been very eager however to see if we could find a way not to just cancel, but postpone the first Brands Hatch event.   Fortunately a major benefit of MSV now running BSB is that following a review of our calendar, I am delighted to be able to immediately announce that we have rescheduled this meeting which will now take place on the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit on 10/11 May.”

“All race day, weekend and grandstand tickets for today’s event will be valid for the new date with no extra charge.   The grids for all of the races within the BSB programme will be as set yesterday, 5 April.   The 10/11 May date was scheduled to be a BMCRC meeting and some races from this will be incorporated into the BSB event.”

“I am so sorry that so many people have had a frustrating day of uncertainty but can assure everyone we have done everything possible to minimise the disruption of such extreme weather in April.”

Jonathan Palmer
Brands Hatch Sunday 6 April 2008

It’s Friday and the sunny is shining at Brands Hatch, as the 2008 season kicks off.

Practice day looks set to be a good one … especially after the limited track time due to weather.  Although the weather is set to turn, making life a little interesting.

But today, the sun is out and is should be a goodun!

Cartegena Testing report.

Leading up to Cartegena I was excited and a little nervous. I had been off my race bike for 5 months, and thats one hell of a long time!!! We also had the new Pirelli control tyre to deal with but I was nervous to how it would feel having been with Dunlop so long. I also had two new mechanics to work with, and Kevin from Wp was working alongside me plus Andy our new Data log man so we had had to settle in and get to know one another.

I was first out on track the first morning, just to blow the cob webs out and get the first few laps out the way. It made me laugh because the bike felt so fast, I thought I was on Stoners Ducati for a few seconds until my brain got up to speed!!! The first day went ok, I just did plenty of laps and got back into the swing of things. On the second day, I ran my new 2008 Centurion Honda. Obviously there was a few teething problems but the day went well, and the bike seemed good straight away. We made some positive Chassis improvements and the day ended well. We tested for the following morning trying a few things and a race distance before packing up to leave for Guadix.
 
Guadix Testing report.
 
It had been two years since I had last been to Guadix and the track looked awesome. The track had changed in two ares and they have done a great job and the weather wasnt bad either! I always enjoy going there as its a friendly atmosphere and your made to feel welcome.
 
I headed out onto track about 11am to get a feel for the place and it was awesome to ride. Straight away I noticed everything was working a lot better than Cartegena and the tyres were amazing. I honestly think they are close to been the best tyres I’ve riden on. We spent the day getting up to speed and straight away we were doing respectable times. We didnt change too much just spent the day getting track time. One of the things I made sure, was I was doing 10-14 laps at a time, so I could fully understand the tyres and how they work.
 
The second day and we decided to up our game. I did a lot of laps to understand the tyres and to be fair I enjoyed riding on them. We made a few changes to the chassis and late morning I got to follow Steve Brogan and it was nice to be able to sit behind him comfortably doing good times too. We never used any softer compound tyres I just used harder ones and the times we were doing were still good and in the ball park. Before the day finished I did a race run and did my fastest lap on lap 17 of 17 and the consistancy was mega. I think one of the things this year is going to be saving the tyres and getting the best out of them later in the race. I was very happy with the 5 days testing and where we were at. You may see I havent mentioned times, well at this stage im not too bothered. The object of the test was to get the feel back and get used to the tyres and the new team personal. I was not firing soft tyres in, or going for a mega fast lap,just getting up to speed and once Brands comes and the flag drops, what do they say? The b******t stops!!!!
 
I was mega happy with the way the team worked together after such a long lay off. We still have a few areas to work on with the bike before the next test at Snett which will improve the overall package and get the 08 bike on the pace. Im happy with myself and how I rode and cant wait to get to Brands. I would just like to say a massive thank you to Paul and Gary, Allan for building the new bikes,  I know he’s had some work to do and my two new mechanics for doing a mega job . Also Kev and Andy, It was like a breath of fresh air having them in the team and I would like to welcome them to the team and look forward to working with them through out the season.
 
Here’s to a good season, Full Gas all year.
 
James

International Motorcycle and Scooter Show 2007
Organisers have announced an all-star line-up of big-name riders and celebrities due to attend the Show, including World Superbike Champion James Toseland, British Superbike (BSB) star Chris Walker, The Long Way Down’s Charley Boorman, legendary motorsport commentator Murray Walker, The BBC’s Hairy Bikers as well as a host of other racers from MotoGP, World Superbike and BSB.

The impressive array of stars scheduled to be at the NEC on various dates throughout the Show will be the closest thing you’ll get to an out-of-season race paddock, filled with the biggest names in motorcycle racing. British racing legend and soon-to-be MotoGP rider James Toseland will open the Show to media on the 22nd (press day), with Troy Corser and Leon Haslam joining in the fun. MotoGP rider and Valentino Rossi’s 2007 team-mate at Yamaha, Colin Edwards, is also set to jet over from the US to make an appearance.

This year’s Show takes place on the new dates of 23rd November - 2nd December (Press Day - 22nd November), in new halls 1, 2, 3, 3a & 4. Ticket prices have been frozen for a third consecutive year making the Show even better value. For more information visit the website www.motorcycleshow.co.uk.

The Centurion Racing team had a strong finish to the 2007 Maxxis British Supersport Championship. Running three riders at the final round at Brands Hatch, James Westmoreland and Dan Cooper were joined by the 2007 British 125 Champion 19-year-old Luke Jones. All three riders rode an exceptional race at the tiny 1.2-mile circuit gaining 9th, 11th and 19th place respectively.

The trio struggled during qualifying and with a huge amount of riders on the circuit it was difficult to get clear track and a good run on a qualifying tyre. With only one second covering the top twenty riders in the Supersport class it was always going to be a tight battle as to where they would finish. Westy secured 16th, Cooper 19th and Jones 32nd on his first appearance on a 600 machine, this was the way they lined up for the scheduled 24-lap race.

All three gained positions off the start and Westy was sitting in 13th, Cooper in 14th and Jones 28th at the end of the first lap. All were carving their way through the tight knit field and manoeuvring their way through the tight pack gaining positions in the process. Aaron Walker crashed heavily into Paddock Hill Bend on lap 22 and forced the race to be red flagged and a result was called.

The team ended the year on a high and without any major hick-ups or problems, they are extremely happy with the way the season has progressed and how the two rookie riders Westy and Cooper have achieved some fantastic results gaining ninth and 15th in the overall Championship results and Westy securing Centurions second Supersport Cup Championship title.

Commenting Westy said “It’s been a very tough weekend but to finish ninth and run such a good consistent fast pace is very encouraging. I got a good start but got tangled up in Paul Young’s accident and lost a lot of time. I rode my hardest today and that was all I had. I’m happy because I was up against it and once again I have shown I can run up front in British Supersport, roll on 2008!”

Cooper said “Despite a really bad qualifying session I’m pleased with my end of season result as it’s one of my strongest results all year. I’ve really enjoyed this season and riding in the 600 class, it’s been a big step up from 125’s but I would like to thank everyone at Centurion Racing for giving me this opportunity. I’m hoping next year I will be able to get some stronger results for the Centurion Team.”

Jones said “This was my first time in the 600 class and I had a lot to learn in the three days. I’m very grateful to the entire Centurion Team for allowing me to race their bike at the weekend. For my first attempt in the series I was reasonably happy with the outcome. It’s a huge difference to riding a 125 and I quickly had to adapt my riding style and learning how to ride the bigger bike.”

The team are delighted with their 2007 season results and would like to thank all their sponsors and supporters that have made the team what it is throughout the year. They are very much looking forward to

welcoming Dennis Hobbs to the team for the 2008 season.
-END-
Carly Rathmell
Freelance Sports PR
www.carlyrathmell.com
carlyrathmell@yahoo.co.uk

Centurion Racing secured strong results in the Maxxis British Supersport Championship with their riders James Westmoreland and Dan Cooper. Westy gained a solid seventh place and took another victory in the Supersport Cup class whilst Cooper hit disaster on the last lap when he hit a false neutral going into the Esses and saw him fall from a healthy 10th place to 16th.

Westy had ridden extremely well throughout the weekend and did not fall out of the top ten throughout the weekend and mastering his way through to second at one point during practice on Friday. Eventually qualifying in seventh position the youngster from Hull was eager to gain another overall top ten finish.

The race was scheduled to be 18-laps but was red flagged on lap nine after a rider’s engine blew up down Craner Curves, the race was to be re-started as an eight lap dash.  Starting from the position they crossed the line when it was red flagged this put Westy in ninth and Cooper in 15th place. As the lights changed Westy dropped back to 11th and Cooper held his place. Both riders fought their way through the pack with Westy getting the better of Sam Owens to finish in seventh place.

Cooper had ridden a stunning race and had pushed through to 10th place a big mistake on the penultimate lap saw him run across the grass and drop a number of places.

Commenting Westy said “I’m pretty disappointed with my seventh place finish today. I messed both starts up and was deep going into turn one. In the first race I got rammed into turn one by James Webb, which unsettled me, then I got stuck behind slower riders. I set the fastest lap of the race just before the red flags came out chasing down the leaders. In the second part I again got stuck behind slower riders and lost touch with the leaders. I feel disappointed not to have been on the podium, or even taken the win. That’s racing and now we move onto Brands.”

A disappointed Cooper said “I got caught up in the first corner trying to avoid James Webb’s crash and was sitting in 19th after the first lap and knew I had a lot of work to do. I got a better start in the restart and was slowly working my way through the pack when I hit a false neutral into the Foggy Esses and I ran onto the grass losing seven places. I’m gutted not to have got a better result but I did feel much more confident on the bike. I’d like to thank the team and also Dunlop for helping me this weekend. I’m looking forward to Brands and hope I can finish the year on a high note.”

The next Maxxis British Supersport race is at Brands Hatch on the 12th – 14th October where the season will conclude.

-END-
Carly Rathmell
Freelance Sports PR