Difficult weather conditions and problems with the set up of the KRP Dunlop shod bike saw Westmoreland qualify down at 6th - one of his lowest so far in the 125 series. 鈥淭he track conditions weren鈥檛 perfect but we did the best we could with the package we had. It doesn鈥檛 really reflect the way I鈥檓 riding but I鈥檓 still really happy. It was only qualifying and we鈥檒l see what the race brings.鈥 A ten minute warm up session on Sunday saw the 18 year old drop down to 11th in the damp conditions. With the circuit still damp but drying and the possibility of more rain in the air James felt quietly confident before the race 鈥渨e鈥檝e just got a few things to sort out with the bike and then we鈥檒l be right there challenging for the win today.鈥
| James Westmoreland |
A poor start on the grid saw James get pushed back to mid pack, after suffering apparent electronic problems with the bike. However, determined not to let the championship slip away he continued to battle his way up to 5th alongside Lincolnshire riders Alex Lowes and Michael Wilcox. Further technical problems saw the bike completely stop on the back straight only to restart again with James bringing the bike into a 鈥渄isappointing鈥 7th. 鈥7th is an absolute disaster, but I鈥檓 very happy with how I鈥檓 riding at the minute and I鈥檓 sure that if everything was going well and the bike was how I wanted it to be, we鈥檇 be challenging for race wins. It is a shame we鈥檙e having problems, as it鈥檚 leading to the poor result we got at Croft and at Oulton two weeks previous.鈥 However James is still optimistic 鈥淭he championship is not over, I鈥檓 only 27 points behind the leader and there鈥檚 still 75 points to play for in the last three rounds.鈥 The Lincolnshire circuit of Cadwell Park is the next meet for the Bennetts British Superbikes, with Silverstone and Brands Hatch making up the remaining rounds for the 2006 season. |