World riders for British Supermoto at Rockingham

Supermoto
By Stuart Williams
July 29 2005

The Brit pack of Iddon, Winstanley and Warren, fresh from the World Championships, will be making a welcome return to UK action, alongside Belgian ace Fred Fiorentino and French hotshot Sylvain Bidart, for the third round of the Vivaldi British Supermoto Championship.

The action takes place at the Rockingham Motor Speedway, on 31st July, and these riders are part of a 100-plus field.

A growing number of local riders are now stepping up to international competition in the Supermoto World Championship, European and other major national championships. Leading the British contingent is Christian Iddon, who is currently fourth in the World S1 class, with Sam Warren 12th and Matt Winstanley eighth in the ultra-competitive S2 class.

Add to the mix for this weekend French Supermoto star Sylvain Bidart, who is taking on local riders courtesy of MW Racing of St Helens, with help from Triple A Racing, on a specially prepared MWR CRF525 in the SM1 class. The 20-year-old Bidart, who lives in Pau in the South West of France, is the revelation of this year’s Maxxis French National Supermoto Championship.

In only his second full year of Supermoto racing, Bidart is already a regular podium visitor, taking on some impressive names such as Van Den Bosch, Chambon and Blot. Gaining a place in the French top three is no easy matter, and the youngster will no doubt be keen to achieve the same level of success on his first ever visit to the UK.

The format for the weekend at the Corby, Northants circuit will be the same as other championship rounds this year, with the Saturday being a practice day for all-comers. Sunday is race-day for SM1, SM2, SM4 and Clubman’s Trophy, with the action commencing at 10:00am and continuing throughout the day.

The start/finish line of the specially designed circuit will be in the shadow of the Turn 4 seating area and main grandstand, making an impressive backdrop to the championship’s first visit to the motor speedway. The course will be an interesting 60/40 combination of tarmac and gravel. It is expected that the higher percentage of gravel will prove to be a real test for riders, making tyre choice and set-up a challenge.

To further spice things up Naturally Best, the company behind Vivaldi potatoes and the title sponsors of the British Championship, are offering £1,000 to the Naturally Best, Rider of the Day. The winner of the award is selected by a panel of experts, with Sam Warren and Fred Fiorentino the recipients at the first two rounds. The bonus scheme represents a substantial purse for the sport, so expect every rider to be going all-out to impress the judges.

The spectators haven’t been forgotten either, with the organisers putting a numbered ticketing system in place for a competition on the day, with several fantastic prizes up for grabs including a free day’s tuition at the Yamaha Supermoto School, VIP Hospitality at a British Superbike round courtesy of Vivaldi Racing, and a gift voucher from Dave Clarke Racing.

For information on the Rockingham Motor Speedway, including directions to the circuit, please logon to www.rockingham.co.uk