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Written by Nigel Jones on May 12, 2008 at 02:05
The confidence gained in Saturday’s free practice was carried forward to race day for the STP Motorsport MV Agusta British Superbike team with Chris Burns taking the first win in British Superbikes for the famous manufacturer.
Starting in 27th place on the grid Chris Burns simply carved his way through the pack from the very first lap. By lap 5 he had passed every one of the Daily Star Superbike Cup challengers and then proceeded to proceeded to hunt down Guy Martin on the Hydrex Bike Animal Honda. He eventually had to settle for 14th place overall, gaining the team’s and MV Agusta’s first ever points in the full British Superbike Championship and at the same time taking a well deserved first place in the Daily Star Superbike Cup for privateer teams.
This success took him to within 20 points of cup leader John Laverty, who finished a distant third, some six seconds behind the STP Motorsport MV Agusta F41000.
The race win was all the more impressive as it was achieved on the team’s second bike after the first bike developed technical issues in the warm up session. It is testament to Crew Chief Paul Snell and his team of technicians that the second bike was in race wining trim.
The elation of race one was tinged by disappointment as electrical gremlins meant the MV Agusta had to pull out of race two after nine laps.
Simon Woods – Team Principal:
“This is a fantastic result for us. We knew that the MV Agusta with Chris [Burns] on board was capable of winning races in the Cup competition but we did not expect it to happen so soon in the season. I have to heap praise on Chris as there is no way we would be where we are now without him on the bike. Running the team on a limited budget we are lucky to have a rider of his calibre and as we develop the bike I know he will finish ahead of much better funded teams as the season progresses. This win will certainly help our cause in finding the finances that we need.
The DNF in the second race was just one of those things that happen in racing but after the euphoria of race one it was a major disappointment. We now have a taste for victory. I would also like to praise the technicians in the garage. They were faced with some challenges today, which they dealt with in a calm and professional manner.”
Chris Burns, Rider:
“To go out on the spare bike and pull off a victory like that is unreal. The whole team is determined to do well and I am certainly happy to be a part of a team which has such enthusiasm for the job in hand. The pace that the MV Agusta had was enough to get me through the field relatively quickly but our lack of development was highlighted once I caught Guy Martin on the Hydrex Honda. I could stay with him but I was lacking the power to overtake. Having said that we are ahead of where we expected to be at this stage of the season and to chasing bikes such as the Hydrex Honda is testament to the potential of the MV Agusta”
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