Seton Interceptor Racing

Warren Conquers Knockhill

Sam Warren experienced the highs and lows of racing as the Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport championship headed north of the border for round five at Knockhill Circuit (17-19 June).

With rain forecast for the vast majority of the weekend, Sam utilised all of his vast armoury of Supermoto skills to conquer the 'Hill' in Saturday's Supersport Qualifying and Sprint. His commanding performances secured Bike Interceptor Yamaha by Seton's debut pole position and race victory.

Saturday morning's Qualifying session had shown early glimpses of Sam's true potential as a wet weather specialist, posting his maiden pole position by over seven tenths of a second from Championship leader Ben Wilson.

Seeley made the early running from the lights in the 18 lap Sprint, with Sam losing a few places in the opening exchanges. However, this stood the 29 year old in good stead as he cleared his head and got down to business, passing Wilson on lap four, then hunting down the Suzuki rider for the lead.

Making the move on lap nine, Sam took control of proceedings, displaying an extraordinary ability of balance and control over his Bike Interceptor Yamaha by Seton R6, as he powered clear of the field to claim his and the team's maiden British Supersport victory by over 3 seconds. Not only was this Sam's and Bike Interceptor Yamaha by Seton's first win in the class, but also Yamaha's first Supersport victory of the 2011 campaign.

With the win came the fastest lap of 54.590s, and Sam's second pole position of the weekend. Expectations were high for another strong podium finish for the Derbyshire based rider in the main 25 lap event. However, the sky turned black with large rain clouds heading across the Forth Bridge in the direction of Knockhill in the minutes prior to the start. Race control signaled a delay and reduction in laps to 20 as teams and riders debated tyre selection and weather conditions.

Finally, the field set off for the two warm-up laps. As Sam rounded the bottom of the circuit for the first time, his Pirellis kissed the greasy white line before unceremoniously dumping Sam and his machine into the gravel and out of contention before the race had even started, ending his 100% record of point-scoring rides this season.

Ben Burke continued his wet weather apprenticeship throughout practice and qualifying for the fifth round of the Metzeler National Superstock 600 championship.

Gaining more experience and pace with each session, Ben elevated his Yamaha into a qualifying position of 21st. Greeted with a dry track for race day, Ben made an excellent start from the lights, taking five places on the opening lap before the Safety Car was called into play. As proceedings re-started on lap five, Ben upped the pace, his lap times tumbling as he closed in on the front.

Dispatching Usher and Lodge by mid-race to reach tenth, Ben had a mammoth 3.8 second gap to bridge to the tail pipe of Wainwright's Suzuki. However, the Bike Interceptor Yamaha by Seton rider was posting the fastest top speeds through both traps and Ben's lap times were consistent in the mid-53s. Ben dropped into the 52 second bracket on the penultimate circulation before making made the decisive move on the final lap to secure ninth and seven valuable championship points.

New Bike Interceptor Yamaha by Seton signing, Andy Lawson, didn't quite have the British debut he had hoped for. The 18-year old Australian fell victim to the slippery tarmac during Friday's Free Practice session, the resulting crash eliminating him from the weekend's activities. Andy will rest up ahead of making his full debut at Snetterton.

Sam Warren: "What a surreal day! By far my best day racing ever. We had really good pace in qualifying in drying conditions and we were able to maintain our gap out front in the changing weather to grab our first pole position. I honestly did't think we had the pace to win in full wet conditions, as we were quite slow in wet Free Practice. I got a bad start but it did me a favour as I then had to knuckle down to pass my way through into second.

Then I managed to bride the gap to Seeley and sat behind him as we pulled clear of the field. About mid-race I made my move and was able to hold on for the win! I really didn't expect it and can't say enough about how well the whole team has performed this weekend. Phil has waited a long time for this win and I'm so happy it was me who could give it to him. Thank you to everyone who has helped me get here, the team and all of our sponsors. I want to say get well soon to my new teammate Andy. I saw his crash and I'm glad he's ok."

Ben Burke: "This weekend was another one where I improved my riding skills in the rain. I am steadily getting much closer to the pace I need to be at and another weekend of wet weather should see me there. As for the race, I was very happy with my result considering I was starting from so far back. It was a good reminder that I can be competitive, with the third fastest overall lap time and fastest through both speed traps. Now I am looking forward to the next round where I can gain more valuable points. Congratulations to Sam and the team for their first Supersport win. I am sorry that Andy didn't have the weekend that he'd planned but I am sure he will be back next round to show us how it's done."

Phil Seton, Team Manager: "That was certainly a weekend of two halves! The team has again worked really well and Sam was brilliant throughout qualifying and the Sprint race. To beat Alastair Seeley, who is no slouch in the wet, and on a factory bike, is a great achievement. The flip-side was that Sam was so unfortunate to have an accident on the warm-up lap and not to score any points. However, it is a great feeling to be the first team running Yamaha's this season to win a Supersport race.

Andy was very fortunate to escape an horrendous crash with no real injuries. Not the best way for him to start his career on the British scene as the crash put him out for the weekend, but he'll bounce back for the next round at Snetterton.

That was another great round for Ben. He's learning all the time and his wet riding has improved tremendously. In the dry he was the third fastest man on track and it could have been a different story had the whole weekend been dry. That said, to come through from 21st to 9th was simply amazing. Hopefully Snetterton will be dry, and Ben can make the most of his and the bike's abilities."

The sixth round of the 2011 MCE British Superbike Championship takes place at the newly revamped Snetterton, Norfolk over the weekend of 1-3 July.

Images © Steve Hutchings / Matt Hutchings

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