MSS Colchester Kawasaki wave goodbye to 2011
MSS Colchester Kawasaki finished the final round of the 2011 British Superbike season by securing second place in the National Superstock Championship, a tremendous result on a brand new bike that the team developed throughout the season.
However the Global Freight-sponsored team’s joy was tempered by the news that not only has Superstock rider Howie Mainwaring injured himself in a motocross training accident, Superbike rider Gary Mason also suffered an injury in practice that ruled him out of the subsequent races.
Gary was ruled out of the final two races of the season having injured his neck in an accident in Saturday’s practice session.
Despite the pain, he attempted to ride in the Saturday race but was forced to retire. Subsequent tests then revealed the full extent of his injuries.
Team mate Ian Lowry finished the Saturday race in 13th but was unlucky to crash out of the first Sunday race and suffered a mechanical issue in the second.
Given the job of developing the brand new Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R in the National Superstock series, Danny Buchan’s second place in his first season both on the bike and in the championship is a remarkable result and shows MSS Colchester Kawasaki’s dedication in developing a new machine.
Throughout the 2011 season, Superstock riders Howie Mainwaring and Danny Buchan secured an impressive 2 wins, 3 second places and 5 thirds.
Ian Lowry (13th in race one, DNF in race two, DNF in race three) said, “Saturday wasn’t too bad and I was starting to feel comfortable on the bike but Sunday was a bit of a disaster, I’m really disappointed. The start of the second race was good and I was running in the top ten but the bike developed a mechanical problem, I’m not sure what it was but the back end felt really bad and I pulled in for safety. I’m really disappointed, the team has done a great job and I felt that I could have had a good result.”
National Superstock 1000 rider Danny Buchan secured second place in the championship after the Superstock race was cancelled due to an incident on the start/finish line. Entering the final round of the series, Danny needed to defend his 14-point advantage over third place Luke Quigley. After a strong qualifying which saw Danny line up fourth on the grid, he got a great start and was running in second when the race was red flagged and subsequently cancelled.
Team mate Howie Mainwaring missed the Brands Hatch race after injuring himself in a motocross training accident, all at MSS Colchester Kawasaki wish Howie a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him back on a bike as soon as possible.
Danny Buchan (7th in race. Championship position: 2nd) said, “That’s not the way I would have liked to finish the championship, I’d much rather have battled Luke for second but I’ll still take it. Having finished the season, 2011 has been amazing. Second place in the championship is a great result and I’d like to say a big thank you to MSS Colchester Kawasaki, who have been superb and a fantastic team to work with. On a personal note I’d like to say thank you to mum and dad and all of the Buchan family, friends and personal sponsors for all their support. I couldn’t have done it without you guys – thank you.”
Team owner Nick Morgan said, “That was a tough final few races and with both Howie and Gary injuring themselves the season does feel like it has finished on a bit of a low, I wish them both a speedy recovery. The start of the season was immense with Stuart Easton running so well, Gary getting podiums and Danny winning first time out, its shame it didn’t finish that way round! That’s racing as they say and we will be back even stronger next year.”