Xpress Racing, struggle for Johnson at Cadwell

Raceline Photography
By Carly Rathmell
September 6 2005

www.xpressracing.co.uk : 22-year-old Hinckley based rider Dave Johnson gained a valiant 14th place at the tenth round of the National Superstock Championships, aboard the Xpress Racing/On Fire Suzuki GSX-R1000 K5 at Cadwell Park on Monday.

The young Australian qualified in 12th position on the grid, and struggled for the majority of the weekend to get to grips with the extremely technical Lincolnshire circuit.

Johnson gained a good start, but was caught up in an incident on the first lap which forced him onto the grass, losing him a number of places. Although he battled hard to fight his way back through the field, he could only salvage 14th position and two points towards his championship standings.

Johnson was certainly in a no win situation, having spent very little time at the spectacular circuit, which is extremely difficult to learn. Disappointed, he commented, “It was certainly a difficult weekend this weekend, as I’ve not had much time to learn the track. It’s very technical and tricky and hard to learn. I enjoyed the weekend, but of course would have liked better results for my efforts.

“I knew once I ran off the track that it would be very hard to gain a good result from the race. I tried to get my head down and work my way through the pack, but everyone had already made a break. I’m looking forward to going to Oulton in a few weeks’ time, as I gained a good result there back in May, and ham oping that I can repeat that success again.”

Nigel Broomhall, Team Principal of Xpress Racing, added, “The problems we have encountered this weekend are a direct result of lack of budget for testing and rider development. Having said that, David made a valiant effort, although we would all have enjoyed a better result. I know the team are capable of better, as David has shown earlier in the season. Oulton Park is coming up on the weekend of 10th/11th September, and we know David is strong there. We are expecting a lot of local support, as the team is based in Stoke-on-Trent, and the team will be working hard to put David back on the rostrum.”