Published: Thursday, 28th June, 2007 12:00
20,000 bike fans to flock to Knockhill
By Sports Desk
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Pic by: Dunfermline Press
AROUND 20,000 motorcycling fanatics will descend on West Fife this weekend for one of the biggest events in the racing calendar.
The seventh round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship will be held at Knockhill and promises to be the biggest and best event of the season at the circuit.
Knockhill’s PR manager, Ray Smith, said, “It’s the event that everyone wants to see. It’s a chance to see your heroes. It’s like the cup final of racing as you will see the best racing the best.”
One leg of the 13-round championship is held annually at Knockhill and this year it will span three days. The championship races will take place on Sunday, when 170 riders will compete over five classes, racing at an average of 16 mph.
Competitors will begin practising tomorrow (Friday) and fans can come and watch for free.
On Saturday, the qualifying races will take place along with stunt displays by Bold Dog and 4444 riders and a demonstration by Niall MacKenzie, three-time Superbike champion, who will be riding the 2006 Ducati moto GP bike, as ridden by world champion Loris Caprossi.
But things will really hot up on Sunday. There is only a split of one point between title holder Ruichi Kiyonari of the HM plant Honda team and Gregorio Lavilla for the superbike class title. Lavilla, riding for
Airwaves Ducati, has already taken five victories this season.
Ray said, “Anything can happen. I can’t think of a better way for people who are into adrenaline to spend a weekend than to watch this riding.”
Professional bikers from throughout the world will be competing and they are well aware of the challenges they face at the track, regarded in racing circles as notoriously tough.
Ryuichi Kiyonari said, “I like Knockhill but it is very different in a wet race. It is a difficult track to learn even in the dry and you need to be experienced to do well. I struggled in my first races at Knockhill because I found it scary but I enjoyed racing there last year.”
Whilst Kiyonari and Lavilla are the two hot favourites, chased only by Kiyonari’s team-mate Jonathan Rea, one young lad will carry the pride of Scotland on his shoulders this weekend.
Stuart Easton, from Hawick, will be completing 28 laps on his own Kawasaki ZX 6R and will be substituting for MSS Discovery Kawasaki team-mate Michael Rutter on an Isilion Kawasaki ZX 10 R, the 200mph ‘big brother’ to the 23-year-old’s normal bike.
He will be the only rider completing three races, two in the superbike group and one in the supersport, amounting to a gruelling 88 laps in total.
Ray said, “His focus will have to be 100 per cent – one blink and he’s off.”
But Stuart, who is already placed sixth in the supersport class, isn’t put off by the challenge of the superbike races and commented, “I am absolutely thrilled at being given the opportunity to ride both bikes and especially so at Knockhill, my home track.”
Ray hopes that the West Fife crowd will get behind the youngster, who has been racing since 1998.
“If people are behind him and he sees the crowd is geed up and that the Saltires are flying, then it will make all the difference,” he said.
Organisers hope to make the event the biggest and best yet. As many as 1000 bikers will camp at Powmill for the entire weekend and 7000 spectators will arrive by bike on Sunday, some from as far away as Spain.
And for those driving cars, they will be pleased to know they can bring them right up to the race track.
Ray said, “We’ve done away with the car park passes so there is no park and ride. It will mean people can bring their cars right up to the event, which will be more convenient. The event is shaping up really well.”
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