It was a disappointing weekend for us at Thruxton on Sunday when I completed the incident packed fourth round of the Fuchs/Silkolene British Supersport championship in 21st place, well outside the points.

Qualifying didn’t go quite to plan, I qualified in 15th place which is really not where I wanted to be. I like to be running up within the top 10 but I will just have to get on with it and see where I end up."

But the race was red flagged following a first corner incident involving two of my good friends, Dennis Hobbs and Lee Johnston,  and a lengthy delay followed. Once the race got underway once again I began to make up places and was soon circulating within the top 10 in ninth position. But coming into the Club chicane I ran wide and had to run across the grass losing seven or eight places in the process.

Although I did begin to claw my way back through the back markers I ran out of time and finished the 16-lap race in 21st place.

I made a good start at the re-start and worked my way up to ninth and then made a manoeuvre coming out of Church and got a really good slipstream into the chicane. But I over braked there and lost quite a few places. I managed to picked up the pace and got back onto the group who had moved away from me.

Going into the back of the course I ran wide at the chicane which put me onto the grass dropping me right down the field and I completed the race well outside the points in 21st place.

It’s not the result I was looking for but on saying that I was happy enough with the bike and am now looking forward to the next round at Snetterton.

I'd just like to wish Denis and Lee a speedy recovery and hope they're not out of action to long.

Round five takes place at the ultra fast Norfolk circuit of Snetterton on June 21st where Marty will be seeking a top 10 result to increase his points tally and move further up the rider standings.

Cheers,  Marty #77

A front brake problem brought disappointment for us at Donington Park on Whit Monday when a poor qualifying result saw me unable to bring the Nutt Travel/T&G Yamaha home for a points finish in round three of the Fuchs/Silkolene British Supersport championship.

Throughout free practice and qualifying the bike suffered from a front brake problem, which saw me make a start from a seventh row grid position in 27th place.

Although he made progress through the back markers I was only able to end the 18-lap affair in 20th place and too far down the field to score any championship points.

MARTY NU77 – OULTON PARK

After the disappointment of a low qualifying position I was delighted to complete a rain- affected British Supersport race at Oulton Park in Cheshire in a fine seventh place on May Bank Holiday Monday.

Qualifying didn’t go as well as expected and I ended up in 16th place for a fourth row grid position, but on saying that, the times were very close and another half a second would have pushed me up to the second row.

   When it came to the race, I got away to a reasonable start but soon discovered a front brake problem that caused me to return to pit lane for adjustments. But the red flag halted the race which was a real stroke of luck as this allowed me to restart the race at the back of the grid rather than a lap down !!! 

Tyre choice was a lottery because of the differing weather conditions and I opted for full wets in the hope the rain would return.

As luck would have it the rain did begin to fall, although not just as heavy as i would have liked it to, and those who made the wrong tyre choice began to fall back leaving me to make up places and finally cross the finish line for seventh position.

The Pirelli full wet weather tyres worked really well for me, they allowed me to work my way up to seventh place which I was really pleased with considering I started the race from 33rd place!!!

It was a frustrating weekend for me but considering my race was more or less over because of the brake problem the red flag worked in my favour and allowed me to get back out there.

I chose the full wets because I was to start from the back of the grid and there was nothing to lose in taking a gamble. I looked out the back of the garage and saw the black clouds were forming and it was looking very grey so I opted for full wets. At one stage it was too dry and I was having a lot of moments. I thought about pulling in sooner than crash but decided to give it one more lap.

Then it started mizzling and I was able to work my way up the field to finish seventh. That’s given me nine championship points and set me on the right track after not getting onto the scoreboard at Brands. I am normally happy with a top 10 finish so seventh is great for me.

The next round is scheduled for Donington Park on Whit Monday, May 25th when I'll will be looking for another strong finish to add to the points tally.