WALKER AIMS TO REDRESS THE BALANCE AT BRANDS!
29 July 2004 - Foggy PETRONAS Racing

Chris Walker is eager to get his season back on track in front of his legion of British supporters at this weekend''s eighth round of the Superbike World Championship at Brands Hatch.

The popular 32-year-old from Nottinghamshire, England, started the season with a bang when he achieved Foggy PETRONAS Racing''s first ever podium in the opening race.

However, a series of technical troubles and an injury sustained during the previous British round at Silverstone have conspired to minimise recent progress. So Chris - known to his fans as The Stalker - is keen to challenge the front-runners once again.

And the omens were good after he lifted the trophy for the pre-event publicity challenge - a race against rival riders on a Segway self-balancing personal transporter (see picture) - beating championship leader and former team-mate James Toseland around the obstacle course by 0.42 seconds!

Chris, who has been on the podium three times at Brands in Superbike World Championship races, said: ''I am desperate to put on a good show for all the Stalker fans, the team and PETRONAS - but also myself. The FP1 is agile and handles well so I think it will be suited to most of the circuit, especially through Clearways, Paddock Hill and Druids. It also helps to know the circuit, although it is not one of our test tracks, and particularly to have set up a few different bikes here. I was on the rostrum last year and qualified second on the grid, so it would be nice to add another couple of podiums. My ribs didn''t bother me at Laguna but I wasn''t able to train properly for that round. Now, after a promotional trip to China with PETRONAS, I am back in the old routine.

Team-mate Troy Corser has twice beaten boss Carl Fogarty at Brands and also has a pole position under his belt at the famous undulating Kent circuit.

Troy said: ''Brands is another rider''s circuit where you have to get your lap spot on. We are almost carrying on where we left on from last year because the weather and troubles on race day meant that we didn''t get too much of a chance with set-up. The engine should be a little bit stronger now that we have had more time to work on the latest developments, so I am looking forward to this weekend and think we should be shooting at the top five or six.''

www.foggypetronasracing.com

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