Beowulf second on grid for opening Supersport Cup race
05-04-2008
2008 British Supersport Cup Rd 01
5th April, Brands Hatch
Combined Qualifying Result
"Awesome" was how Beowulf Racing's Pat McDougall (22) summed up his day after completing the two Qualifying sessions for the opening round of the 2008 British Supersport Cup championship at Brands Hatch today. The Guildford rider's time of 1:30.894 puts him in second place for the Cup rankings and 17th overall on the main Supersport grid. It is also three seconds faster than he managed to lap the 2.3-mile Grand Prix circuit the last time he was here in 2006. Back then, McDougall was aboard the more powerful Beowulf Suzuki 1000 rather than the team's Yamaha R6 he's campaigning this year.
Yesterday's two free practice sessions also saw McDougall lying second with a time of 1:32.330. In this morning's opening Qualifying session he slipped to fifth, a result of the damp circuit drying more quickly than the team expected. The second session was held in dry but overcast conditions and McDougall was on the pace from the start. When the session re-commenced after a temporary stop Pat saw his chance: running on fresh tyres and with a clear track ahead of him, he upped his pace to log his best time of 1:30.984 and secure second spot on the Cup grid. When the first drops of rain began to spit down five minutes from the end, McDougall wisely retired from the proceedings and although his second place for the Cup grid was secure he was relegated from 16th place overall to 17th by Irish rider BJ Toal who shot up into 14th place in the final five seconds of the session.
"It's all gone really well today," gasped an exhausted but smiling McDougall afterwards. "To be honest, I think I could have gone faster but I was happy with my time of 1:30.8 and there didn't seem much point in throwing it all away in the dying stages. The team are doing a great job in preparing my bike especially my new mechanic Craig Broom, he is so relaxed yet efficient. I've gone faster today than I've ever managed before at Brands Hatch - even though I've been on more powerful bikes than the R6. There are perhaps some slight alterations we could make to the front and rear suspension this evening but I'm tempted to leave everything alone, the bike is running well enough. Now it's just a case of waiting for tomorrow's race and seeing how things turn out."
Sunday's 18-lap race is set to start at 3.30pm.
2008 British Supersport Cup
Final Qualifying Positions
1. Craig Fitzpatrick (Yamaha) - 1:29.797
2. Pat McDougall (Yamaha) - 1:30.894
3. Dean Hipwell (Yamaha) - 1:32.004
2008 British Supersport Championship
Final Qualifying Positions
1. Hudson Kennaugh (Yamaha) -1:29.077
2. Glen Richards (Triumph) -1.29.322
3. John McGuiness (Honda) -1:29.509
17. Pat McDougall (Yamaha) - 1:30.894
Sponsors
Team StoneBaker.
The great race at the new Portimao circuit brings an end to our season in World Superbike Superstock 600, with riders Gino Rea and Dan Linfoot.
The season has been a success with Gino third and Dan fifth in the championship standings following three victories and five additional podiums in total. The results have also acted as a stepping stone to the riders for next season, with both securing high profile, career progressing rides for 2009.
Thank you for all of the emails, calls, texts and visits throughout the year. It has been much appreciated.
