TRIUMPHANT WIN FOR NORTHPOINT HONDA RACING
31 August 2005 - Northpoint Honda Racing

19-year-old Northpoint Honda rider Cal Crutchlow had an impressive weekend at the 10th round of the British Supersport Championship.

Not only did Crutchlow take an exceptionally convincing win but he also gained Pole Position and the fastest lap of the race.

Crutchlow was on a mission the entire weekend and was riding exceedingly well around the technical twisty circuit of Cadwell Park. He was dominant from the start and was consistently in the top three in every timed session. His team-mate 20-year-old Craig Jones also secured a strong fourth place which still sees him in with a good chance of taking the British Supersport title.

After qualifying on Pole, Crutchlow did not get the start in the race that he would have hoped for and was sat in 5th place by the first corner whilst Jones had settled into 3rd from 3rd position on the grid. The race was red flagged however on the first lap due to an incident on the entrance to the chicane and it was called a complete restart.

With a 15-minute delay and a 12-lap restart announced the riders rejoined the grid once more. Crutchlow gained a better start and slotted into 3rd with Jones in 4th. It was not long before Crutchlow began to carve his way through the field taking the lead from Stuart Easton on lap four.

Jones was locked in a five-way battle with Camier, Riba, Andrews and Easton and constantly had to keep the pressure on to hold onto his position. As position swapped it was Crutchlow that was beginning to break free from the chasing pack and began to make the race his own.

Jones made a valiant effort to pass Camier on the drag to the line but was beaten by 0.01 and was pushed into 4th. Jones still remains second in the Championship but Crutchlow has now moved himself up to 3rd, 23 points behind his team mate.

An ecstatic Crutchlow said ''Obviously that''s my first British Supersport win and it''s a great feeling which I don''t think has throughly sunk in just yet. I had to make sure that I stayed focussed and kept riding smoothly. I had a great weekend and everything thankfully seemed to work in my favour. I''d like to thank the whole team and all our sponsors for all their hard work and support I''ve finally been rewarded with a win. I''m hoping that I can continue to get some good results at the remaining rounds.''

A disappointed Jones said ''I would have liked to have been a little higher up the table to day to try and narrow the gap on the Championship lead but I''ve had a good consistent finish and that''s what I needed. It''s certainly going to be a chase right to the end and it will be whoever can remain consistent who will eventually win the overall title.''

Team Manager Gary Ekerold said ''It''s been a fantastic team effort especially from Pete and Paul who have worked extremely hard throughout the year to achieve the win that we got today. This is our second season with Cal he certainly pulled out all the stops this weekend and made a fantastic effort. It would have been nice for Craig to be higher up but the Championship is still not lost and with three rounds remaining anything could still happen.''

The next round is at Oulton Park, Cheshire on the 11th September.

www.northpointhondaracing.com

More News
  For August 2005
  From Northpoint Honda Racing
  For Supersport
  Biker247.com Home Page