You have to feel for Leon Camier. The lanky Brit has been battling against a bit of a slug of a Suzuki and just when it all looked like it was going in the right direction, Leon fires himself in the air and out of the Aragon
World Superbikes
A good weekend for BMW man Chaz Davies
On a happier note the Brits and Irish were back out again in force in Aragon. Eugene Laverty, Tom Sykes, (semi-Brit) Guintoli and Chaz Davies all looked hungry for the win in the first race. Although not all the Brits were enjoying the race, the fast circuit certainly didn't do any favours for the slow Hondas, leaving Jonathan Rea and Leon Haslam with little chance of challenging the leaders.
After setting the initial pace, Laverty's Aprilia suffered an electrical issue, dropping him out of contention on lap five. Having taken over the lead the gremlins then attacked Tom Sykes, handing first spot to Chaz Davies. Would the BMW hold together for the remaining 13 laps? Or more to the point, could Chaz keep ahead of the hard charging Guintoli? Yes he could. A great ride secured Chaz his first BMW win with Guinters in second, Melandri in third and Rea in fourth after hanging into the coat tails of far faster bikes.
Top step of the podium twice over for Davies
Race two and after a bit of a kerfuffle once again it was Laverty leading the way - although unfortunately for him that was directly into the first gravel trap, scoring a bit fat zero in Spain. On the tarmac Sykes, Davies and Guintoli were setting the early pace with Melandri in hot pursuit. A huge moment for Sykes saw Davies take the lead, the Welshman needed no second offer and proceeded to check out, sticking clear air between him and the chasing pack. Behind Davies the gremlins had found their way into Rea's brakes, putting him out of the points, while Haslam was once again struggling with a lack of top speed.
The rest of the race passed relatively drama, and gremlin, free. A double win for Davies, two seconds and the championship lead for Guintoli and a consolation podium for Sykes.
Over in Supersport, Brit Sam Lowes got a soul-destroying mechanical issue on the last lap while fighting for the win. Jack Kennedy got seventh with Kev Coghlan in 13th. Damn those gremlins...
Race one
1. Davies (BMW Motorrad Goldbet SBK)
2. Guintoli (Aprilia Racing Team)
3. Melandri (BMW Motorrad Goldbet SBK)
Race two
1. Davies (BMW Motorrad Goldbet SBK)
2. Guintoli (Aprilia Racing Team)
3. Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team)
Championship places
1: Guintoli (Aprilia Racing Team)
2: Davies (BMW Motorrad Goldbet SBK)
3: Laverty (Aprilia Racing Team)
Brit watch (race one/race two)
Eugene Laverty (Red Devils Roma) – 15/DNF
Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) – 19/3
Leon Camier (Fixi Crescent Suzuki) – DNS
Leon Haslam (Pata Honda World Superbike) – 9/9
Jonathan Rea (Pata Honda World Superbike) – 4/15
Chaz Davies (BMW Motorrad Goldbet SBK) – 1/1