The Be Wiser Kawasaki team had a tough weekend at round seven of the MCE British Superbike Championship at Thruxton Circuit. Danny Buchan was unlucky to crash out of a potential podium finish in race one and suffered a tyre issue in race two and was forced to retire. Chris Walker was struggling with set-up during the weekend and finished in 15th and 12th places respectively.
After suffering extensive injuries at Knockhill it was good to see Chris Walker nearly back to his fully fit self at Thruxton. Having not raced to his full capacity at Brands, Chris was trying to find a suitable set-up for the two long races around the very abrasive circuit. He was able to qualifying in 13th place on the grid for race one. He got one of his famous starts and was ninth after lap one, the red flag was shown on lap six and the riders returned to pit lane before the restart.
On the re-start, Chris missed the pit-lane shutting and was forced to start the race from the back of the grid. Despite this Chris worked hard and was able to secure on vital Championship point finishing the 15-lap race in 15th place.
For race two Chris started from 16th place on the grid, he got a steady start and was struggling in a low position for the opening laps. He soon started to make progress through the field and made some good passes; he was up to 15th at the end of lap 11 and was making further progress. He finished the 20-lap race in 12th place.
Danny Buchan was eager to make amends for missing both races at Brands Hatch after he was taken out on the opening lap of the first race knocking him out. Danny was riding well throughout the weekend and continuously improving on his times in what was a very close field.
Danny made it through to the second qualifying session and started the opening 20-lap race from ninth place on the grid. He got a steady start and dropped back to 11th after the opening lap and was working his way back through the pack and was up to 10th when the race was red flagged due to an oil spill. On the restart Danny held his position of ninth on lap one and was soon locked in a huge battle for a podium place, on lap ten he was up to fourth having made a pass on Shane Byrne. He continued to have a battle with several riders and was unfortunate to crash out on the final lap with Tommy Bridewell.
Danny started from sixth place for race two and was fighting for another top ten placing but the youngster was having serious problems with the grip on the tyres and he was forced to retire on lap 12 of 20.
Danny Buchan - "This year has been so frustrating and I really thought we might turn a corner at Thruxton this weekend. I felt really strong during the practice sessions and was eager to get a couple of good results from the weekend. Once again that wasn't to be, I felt good on the re-start of race one and thought I might be able to battle and fight for a podium. We were all dicing for position and all going for the same piece of tarmac, sadly I tucked the front and crashed out and collected Tommy (Bridewell) in the process, this was a mistake and no rider ever wants to take another rider out. I wanted to get a good race under my belt in race two but just had no grip from the start; I tried my hardest to stay out there but didn't want to crash again so brought her home in one piece."
Chris Walker - "I'm back to some sort of fitness and managed to get two point scoring finishes. I felt much better on the bike this weekend at Thruxton after a couple of rounds with no points scoring places. I'm not quite fully up to speed yet and I had to start race one from the back row of the grid, but I really enjoyed being back battling in race two. I can't wait to get to Cadwell, I have a couple more weeks to rest up and get fully fit but I'm sure there is plenty more to come. #OldButGold."
Tommy Hill - Team Manager - "The weekend started really well for us and Danny was setting some consistently fast times and Chris was showing his form and back to full fitness.
Chris has had a rough few months at racing and it is good to see him back out there and fighting and gaining some Championship points for the team. They have worked hard with set-up this weekend as they were struggling from the start. It is good to see him back and gaining some points. We know where we have to be and what we have to do and will continue to keep pushing forwards for both riders to allow them to get the results they deserve.
Danny really was showing some good form this weekend, his times were consistent and he looked happy on the bike. We were struck with a little bad luck again but Danny showed he could be in there and fighting for a potential podium position. The second race he had to pull in as he had no grip on the bike and didn't want to do any unnecessary damage to the Be Wiser Kawasaki.
Danny and Chris both like Cadwell and I hope our luck will change there for the better and we can improve and fight for some good results. We are always striving to make everything better in our first year in a very tough and competitive Championship. The team worked really hard all weekend and I want to thank them for the efforts."
