BRANDS HATCH – THE BIG ONE
27 July 2004 - Yamaha Racing

Regarded by most as the jewel in the championship’s crown, the idyllic circuit in the area known as ‘The Garden of England’ traditionally draws in the series’ biggest attendance of the year.

The circuit opened for business as a venue for grasstrack racing in 1926, with the first tarmac layout coming along in 1950. The current layout retains the great feel of a typically British circuit as it winds like a giant rollercoaster through the woodland.

Weather could also prove to be a factor in this weekend’s racing. In typical UK fashion it could be wet, or it could be sunny, or it could provide riders with the worst conditions of all by being both wet and dry come race day.

YZF-R6 set-up – finding a balance
Make no mistake, Brands Hatch is one of the most demanding circuits on the world supersport roster when it comes to finding a good bike set-up.

It is always about finding a good compromise setting but here at Brands, with its fast blast up Hawthorn Hill, the curved start/finish ‘straight’ and difficult elevation changes at Paddock Hill and Surtees, the compromise is so much more than at other circuits. The natural elevation changes can cause the suspension to bottom out, especially at the end of the long Hawthorn Hill straight but riders must avoid the temptation to stiffen things up too much as this will sacrifice performance at many of the other corners. Riders will probably look for a good set-up through the more conventional fast corners, like Hawthorn, Stirling’s and the Clark, and use their body weight muscle the bike through the less than perfect set-up for the rest of the course.

The track also features a lot of blind corners which can make it difficult for the riders to gain complete confidence in the circuit. Circuit knowledge can count for a lot here and the riders will have to make the most of the four 45-minute practice sessions if they are to find the optimum lines for what is usually a hectic race.

2003 race recap – Second for Jurgen
Circuit specialist Stéphane Chambon (Suzuki) was the runaway winner as he took his third supersport victory at Brands Hatch last year, while Jurgen van den Goorbergh (Yamaha Belgarda Team) took a fine second place on his first visit to the demanding British circuit.

Season so far – title remains wide open
Jurgen van den Goorbergh (Yamaha Motor Italia) goes to Brands as the leading Yamaha rider, in second place in the championship, although the Dutchman will be looking to recapture the early season form that saw him take a win and three podiums in the first races. With seventh and sixth place finishes in the last two races Jurgen has lost a little ground to series leader Karl Muggeridge (Honda), but with a 15 point gap and four races to go the title race is still wide open.

Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) is in fourth place, just three points ahead of Fabien Foret (Yamaha Motor Italia). Both are experienced riders capable of putting together a late season charge for the title. Curtain also started the season like a train only to hit a patch of mid-season misfortune, while Foret’s season luck turned around as he raced to a convincing first victory on the YZF-R6 last time out at Silverstone.

Christian Kellner (Yamaha Motor Germany) has been dogged by bad luck all season and is currently in 14th position. However the German has shown pace that belies his results and is always a contender for race wins and podium positions.

European Superstock Championship – R1 riders look to continue domination Yamaha goes to Brands Hatch looking to maintain its 100 per cent record in the European Superstock Championship. The new-for-2004 YZF-R1 has filled the top two places at the five races so far this season, with Gianluca Vizziello (Lorenzini by Leoni) taking three victories to lead the points’ standings from team-mate and two-times winner Lorenzo Alfonsi. The man most likely to break the domination of the Italians is Yamaha Motor Germany’s Didier van Keymeulen. The Belgian is third in the points and comes to Brands Hatch on the back of a strong showing last time out in Silverstone, where he set pole position and led much of the race before slipping off.

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