Pemberton Tyres-backed rider Christian Iddon finally chalked up his first British Supersport Championship points of the season at Croft, but ironically it was his toughest weekend so far.
The Oxford TAG Triumph rider had never ridden the Croft circuit prior to the weekend, so he faced an uphill battle to break his 2011 duck.
Iddon was happy following the opening practice session, after posting the eleventh best lap time. On a damp track, Iddon found himself to be competitive even though he was still familiarising himself with the bumps of the Yorkshire track.
The 26-year-old’s weekend took a turn for the worse when he crashed out of the second practice session. On his first quick lap of the session, Iddon ran too deep into the left hander approaching the complex. Once he was on the wet grass there was no way of slowing the Triumph before hitting the barrier. Sensing the impending impact, Iddon laid the machine down. Although he hit his head on the tyre wall, Iddon walked away unscathed.
Having only completed 5 laps, and having to sit out the remainder of the session, Iddon lost valuable track time.
Iddon’s first flying lap, on a dry track, didn’t come until the one and only qualifying session. A combination of the crash and a lack of laps meant he was struggling to live up to the standards he had set at the opening two rounds. Iddon could only finish the session in 20th.
From 20th on the grid, Iddon made an impressive start; gaining 5 places on the opening lap. From then on however, Iddon was unable to keep in touch with the group in front. When the race was brought to a premature conclusion, following an accident, Iddon was still in 15th position. That was good enough to secure his maiden championship point of the season.
For the feature race, Iddon was 19th on the grid. He made another useful start, this time picking up three places in the early exchanges.
On the second lap, Iddon hit trouble. Oxford TAG Triumph team-mate Paul Young high-sided at the hairpin. The stricken Triumph then brought down Luke Stapleford’s Kawasaki. As Iddon came round the left-hander, he braked hard to avoid the wreckage but struck one of the rider-less machines. Having scrubbed just enough speed, Iddon managed to stay upright but was forced to back up to get round the blockage.
By this time, he had dropped to 23rd. A determined Iddon went on a charge. Over the next laps, he caught and passed 9 riders and had 12th place in his sights. However, the aggressive riding had taken its toll on his tyres. Iddon just didn’t have the grip to make up any further places and had to settle for 14th at the chequered flag.
Afterwards Iddon stated: “It’s been a tough weekend for us really, but we have managed to score points in both races. We haven’t been able to match the pace that we have had at the opening two rounds yet had our two best finishes. Sometimes that’s just how things go.
“I had never ridden here before, so I have to be positive about the results. The damp track in first practice was a bit of a leveller and I was competitive. I was hoping that we might get similar conditions for the race, so that I would have a better chance.
“The crash of Friday was a big stumbling block for me. I just down shifted going in and when I released the clutch the rear just locked up. As soon as I got on the grass I had no chance of saving it. I was OK, but I hit my head pretty hard. The worst thing about it was having to sit out the rest of the session. I needed all the time I could get really, just to learn the track.
“We had some more bad luck in the race when Paul [Young] crashed in front of me. I just had nowhere to go. I then battled back pretty well and I thought I could get the two ahead of me, but the tyres had nothing left.”
“At least I have scored some points, and we can now build on that as we go to Thruxton for round four.”
