Team Suzuki Press Office – July 3.
The Bennetts Suzuki team is feeling confident ahead of the fifth round of the MCE British Superbike championship at Knockhill this weekend, after enjoying a positive test at the Fife circuit last month.
The team, which had no existing data for its GSX-R1000 machines from previous seasons, used the test in Scotland to work on the bikes' base set-up, to give riders Christian Iddon and Josh Waters the chance to be as competitive as possible around the 1.3 mile track.
Both riders and mechanics are eager to get back to business this weekend, and are looking to build on the positives from the previous round at Snetterton which showed the raw potential for both riders and machines, with Iddon and Waters qualifying for race two in sixth and eighth place respectively, followed by Iddon's competitive race pace.
Christian Iddon:
"The combination of the two tests at Knockhill and Snetterton and then the race there mean we're starting to put the pieces together. As I said before the results at Snetterton didn't reflect our pace, and we have more things to try this weekend, so we're looking for a good result. You have to ride places like Silverstone and places like Knockhill in BSB, so you need to be able to ride at different types of circuits, and it's challenging for teams and riders. I was the old Supersport lap record holder round there though, so I like the place and I'm looking forward to getting back on the bike again this weekend."
Josh Waters:
"I like racing at Knockhill. It's tight and it's not easy, but once you piece it all together it's a really enjoyable circuit. We do still have some work to do, we know that, but we've also shown that the speed is there with our fastest laps at Snetterton and the grid positions for both races; it's just trying to make it work over full race distance."
Jack Valentine - Team Manager:
"We're looking forward to getting back to Knockhill and I'm looking for a strong performance this weekend. We had a good test there back in June and came away with some good information to work with. Knockhill is a quirky track and always brings with it some surprises. I've also never been there and not had some rain, so we'll need to be ready with our wet weather set-up. It's a short, sharp lap around there, so we're aiming for a strong qualifying so we can get away and get in amongst it in the races."
