Guiver and Morris take a race win each at Thruxton circuit
Rob Guiver and Leon Morris take a win each
Sean Neary takes two podiums with a 2nd and a 3rd
Guiver leads Morris in the championship by 5 points
The Ducati TriOptions Cup served up to two hugely entertaining races over the weekend with the two leading championship contenders sharing a race win each.
Race 1
Rob Guiver (Hyside Motorcycles) continued his form from Donington Park with the quickest times in both practice and qualifying to lay down a marker for his nearest title rival Leon Morris (Carl Cox Motorsport/ P&H Motorcycles). However it was local man Morris who was to come out on top in what was become almost a two part race.
Despite Guiver starting from pole it was Sean Neary (Zoek Racing team) who took the lead into first corner however it was Robbie Brown (Boast Plumbing) out in front after the first lap. Behind the leading two, the battle was just as intense as places were swapped to and forth, with Morris making a charge from sixth to third. The race was all set up for a titanic battle. However the safety car came out after lap 3 due to a faller, Jake Mason (Hyside Motorcyles/ Jimmy Mann Racing). The safety car brought the leading five back into the pack and bunched the field perfectly for a sprint race.
The Safety car pulled in on lap 7 with Neary leading from Brown, Morris, Guiver, Phil Atkinson (Highsparks Motorsport), and Louis Dawson (Ducati Wolverhampton).
Brown was immediately all over Neary and took the lead again. Brown tried to make a break for it but was distracted by a pass from Morris as Neary again went into lead. Breathless stuff as the front three plus Guiver were now breaking away from Atkinson and Dawson in fifth and sixth.
Guiver was now into the mix as he took third from Brown looking for a last gasp victory. Guiver lined up Morris but out braked himself and was forced to run on finishing third behind Sean Neary and Leon Morris, who took the win.
Race 2
Sean Neary (Zoek Racing Team) lined up for Race 2 in pole position, with Rob Guiver (Hyside Motorcycles) and Phil Atkinson (Highsparks Motorsport) making up the rest of the front row. All riders got away cleanly with Louis Dawson (Ducati Wolverhampton) making a great start to his race, moving from 7th to 4th by the end of the first lap.
Neary led until Atkinson made a pass into the Club Chicane on lap 2 only for the riders to swap positions 3 laps later. On lap 6 Leon Morris (Carl Cox Motorsport/P&H Motorcycles) got past Neary to take the lead only for Guiver to make a great move into the chicane seconds later, passing both riders for the top spot.
Less than a second covered the top 5 riders with positions changing between them. There was drama as fifth placed Dawson crashed out on lap 8 as Guiver continued to lead the race. Despite traffic from backmarkers, Guiver eventually took a closely fought win ahead of Morris and Neary. Guiver now retains his championship lead from Morris by 5 points.
Rob Guiver - Hyside Motorcycles
“I knew I was going to struggle towards the end. But it looked like everyone was struggling with sliding. It’s been so hot this weekend I don’t think the tyres have been used to their potential. if it was a bit cooler it would have been better. But I can’t thank Hyside enough, Ronnie, Simon, all my crew, Mick, my Dad, my wife. It’s been a fantastic year so far. But Leon’s just there. Every time we keep winning he’s right behind us and every time I’m behind him I’m a couple of places behind him so I’ve got to sort that out.”
Leon Morris - Carl Cox Motorsport/P&H Motorcycles
“I’m really happy. I’ve got a baby due next week and I’m all in one bit! We’ve had a great weekend so thanks to all the P&H guys.”
Sean Neary - Zoek Racing Team
“I rode the wheels off. I could see on the big screen, I knew they were queuing up behind me so I knew it would be a dogfight at the end. I did everything I could to get that race win, we will keep chipping away soon and I am sure that race win will come soon.”