Strong performance by BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team goes unrewarded on Sunday at Donington Park.

Donington Park. After pole position and a podium finish on
Saturday, Sunday’s action in the FIM Superbike World Championship
(WorldSBK) at Donington Park (GBR) did not go according to plan for
the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team. In the Superpole race, unfortunate
circumstances saw BMW S 1000 RR rider Tom Sykes (GBR) end up with a
DNF instead of finishing in second on the podium. In the main race
of the afternoon, a catch-up race saw him finish in seventh place.
Peter Hickman (GBR) retired in the morning due to a technical
defect, he finished eleventh in the afternoon.

 

Sykes started the morning’s Superpole sprint race from pole position.
He was embroiled in a close duel for the lead with Jonathan Rea (GBR /
Kawasaki) and was at the front of the field for four laps. Rea
overtook him, but Sykes was hot on the heels of his rival in second
place. With three laps to go, a technical defect meant Hickman lost
oil, several riders fell as a result, and the race was aborted. After
the race was red flagged and the field headed back to the pits, the
oil slick also sent Sykes skidding into the gravel. Second place was
taken away from him and he was classified as not having finished the race.

 

This meant Sykes had to start the second main race of the afternoon
from tenth on the grid. With a plucky catch-up race, he moved up into
seventh. Hickman started from eleventh on the grid and briefly dropped
down one place, but was back in eleventh after the second lap, where
he remained until the end of the race. Hickman stepped in for Markus
Reiterberger (GER) at Donington Park, who was unable to compete after
contracting a severe viral infection. Reiterberger will return to
action in the next round this coming weekend at Laguna Seca (USA).

 

Quotes after race two at Donington Park.

 

Marc Bongers, BMW Motorrad Motorsport Director:
“Unfortunately, today didn’t go according to plan. Firstly, we are
very sorry that the technical issue with Peter’s motorcycle in the
Superpole race affected other riders, who ended up falling.
Unfortunately, Tom’s second place was revoked after he fell on the
cool down lap and was unable to make it back to the pits with his bike
within the requisite time. In the main race he delivered another
outstanding performance and got a lot out of the race with seventh
place. We need to file today under learning year and move forward. We
saw that the pace of the BMW S 1000 RR is definitely there, and we
hope we can convert this into the corresponding results in the
Superpole and all three races at Laguna Seca. Kudos to Peter, who
jumped in at short notice and delivered a really strong performance.”

 

Shaun Muir, Team Principal BMW Motorrad WorldSBK
Team:
“The rule book went against us in the Superpole Race.
Tom did everything right. He had a good, strong pace. It was only
between him and Jonathan to battle for the win in the sprint race. To
be penalised with the five-minute return-pit-lane rule we felt was
extremely harsh considering all the circumstances. However, there is
nothing in the rule book that would have allowed any different outcome
to that. Tom could not get the bike back to the paddock – it could not
be moved – within the five-minute period stipulated in the rule book.
So, we must accept the outcome as harsh as it is. Tom’s main race was
obviously affected by starting from tenth. He rode a strong race and
even though he struggled with grip he was within a second of fourth
position and not too far away from the podium. We have to take
strength from this weekend; I’m pleased with the guys, I’m proud of
everyone’s effort, and proud of how everyone bounced back from such a
big knockback in the sprint race to come back fighting in the main
race. We will take this away with us, it will hopefully make us
stronger and we will learn from it. Peter had a bit of a lonely main
race. If he had got away a little bit sharper at the start, he could
maybe have stayed with the guys in front of him. But we are happy with
P11. He did not put a foot wrong all weekend, coming in at the last
minute and he has certainly done himself and the team proud.”

 

Tom Sykes: “It certainly was an unlucky day. When we
came over the hilltop into Melbourne Loop after the red flag, there
was a parked car right at the edge of the tarmac, and riders, bikes
and marshals, so I looked up just to try and understand if someone was
coming on track. Then I hit the oil, Jonathan nearly crashed and I
unfortunately did. What happened completely changed the dynamic of the
day and of the long race. Starting from tenth, I struggled as I would
have needed some clear air. The performance was certainly compromised
in today’s race. It’s a shame because we definitely had the pace for
the podium. Yes, I’m disappointed but with the form we have shown this
weekend, we still have a lot of positives to take away.”

 

Peter Hickman: “I’m a bit disappointed to be outside
the top ten, to be honest. I felt I had some pace to be in the top
ten. But I did not quite have the grip in the final race compared to
what we had earlier in the day and yesterday. Maybe the track
temperature went up a bit but because of what had happened in the
Superpole Race, we did not the have time to make changes to the bike
based on what we had learned in the first race for the second. But
that’s the way it goes. I’ve had a good weekend, I’ve enjoyed myself
and learned something. The team has been fantastic, thanks to Smiths
Racing BMW for allowing me to compete here, and to Dunlop UK for
allowing me to drop their weekend to come here. I hope to get an
opportunity like this again sometime in the future.”