WARREN MAINTAINS MOTOGB CHAMPIONSHIP LEAD DESPITE FIRE
21 July 2006 - Aprilia

It was a weekend of panel bashing and a spectacular fuel fire for the SR Off-Road Aprilia squad and rider Sam Warren at the Ingliston Showgrounds in Scotland that saw the Derbyshire rider maintain his SM1 and Superfinal lead with two podium finishes.

The battle for supremacy in the MotoGB series is usually between the two Aprilia riders of Warren and Iddon but this time out they were joined by the third member of the British contingent taking on the World Championships in KTM mounted Matt Winstanley.

First blood in the SM1 class was drawn by Iddon who managed to pip Warren to pole position in qualifying by just one hundredth of a second with Winstanley a further tenth of a second behind to be third quickest.

The first race was an absolute thriller for the large Scottish crowd at what was a very tight and twisty circuit that didn’t really suit the Aprilia SXV. Warren and Iddon quickly established a five second buffer over Winstanley with Warren comfortably holding down the lead before he was hit by Iddon taking both riders out.

Warren re-mounted but the damage was done as Winstanley snatched the lead and the win as the SR Off-Road Aprilia rider recovered to finish second.

In the second race it was Winstanley who took the holeshot with Warren and Iddon battling for second. Warren unfortunately slid off at one point and was forced to eventually settle for third.

Drama ensued in the Superfinal as a pinhole in the Aprilia’s fuel line sprayed petrol over the SXV’s exhaust causing a flash fire in the holding area just prior to the race start. While it looked spectacular and was quite a shock to all those in close proximity (particularly Warren) it was quickly put out and caused only very superficial damage. It was enough though to prevent Warren starting and he had to watch the last race of the day from the sidelines.

Warren said it was great to have Winstanley join the fold as they day became a genuine three way battle.

“There was some serious panel bashing going on out there and a lot of contact. I came off the worse for wear on one occasion but that’s racing and it’s great to mix it up with Matt as well. There really is nothing in it anymore between the three of us and hopefully it makes for a good show for the spectators.”

SR Off-Road Aprilia boss Mick Spencer agreed with Warren and said there would be another opportunity to see who was best in a couple of weeks.

“The three are now very evenly matched and I think whoever gets the best start and stays out of trouble is going to take the wins. It’s a shame we had the fire just prior to the Superfinal but it looked a lot worse than it was. The three lads will have another chance to see who’s best in a couple of weeks at Langbaurgh.”

Warren has now built up a 60 point lead in the SM1 MotoGB class over nearest rival Ady Smith. He also leads the Superfinal championship despite not starting at Ingliston.

The next event for the SR Off-Road Aprilia team will be the ACU/AMCA governed British Championship at Langbaurgh near Middlesborough on the 30th July.

www.aprilia.com

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