Matt and Kurt Wigley of Wigley Racing were back at Brands Hatch for Round 6 of the British Superbikes Championship. Here’s their rundown of the race:
The half way point of the season has quickly arrived and Round 6 brought us back to Brands Hatch to tackle the GP circuit. Matt was pleased to return despite still recovering from his injuries. We were faced with bright forecasts for another glorious weekend and all engines were ready to go!
The Free Practice sessions bought a positive beginning to the weekend, with FP1 providing warm, dry conditions. Matt spent FP1 finding his feet and getting back on the pace, whilst Kurt was faced with a reduced session following an engine failure. The mechanics did a fantastic job swapping the engine in less than two hours in order to prepare for the following session. For FP2 we were greeted with a sudden downpour and a wet track. Kurt soon got to grips with the changing conditions, having already shown earlier in the season that he has the pace to be a front runner in the rain, completing the session in P3. Matt also enjoyed the session, running in the top 10 before completing the session in P11.
The sun returned on Saturday as we entered qualifying beginning with the Moto3 class where Josh shaved almost three seconds off his lap time from practice and obtained P15. Both Kurt and Matt had a challenging session, with multiple pit stops between the two of them making changes to the setup in a bid to piece together the perfect lap.
For Race 1, both boys pushed to stay with the main group. Kurt had a good start to the race, however got stuck trying to pass a slower rider on the open stages, therefore the next group broke away. He was able to bring it home in 14th position, beating his personal best lap time for the weekend and finishing in the points. Matt also had a great start from such a long way back and made some room in the opening laps, however as the race progressed he slipped off the back of the pack, leaving him just outside the points.
Sunday bought more positive prospects for the boys as their improved lap times enabled them to start from better positions on the grid. A poor start from Kurt set him back after the first corner and staggered his rhythm. Firstly, he had to pass two GP2 riders to meet an intense encounter with another rider for 14th position. There was serious deliberation and numerous overtaking manoeuvres and Kurt came out triumphant, closing the race in the points. Matt also performed well; with his brother in sight he endeavoured to continue passing riders and was able to close the race in P15, a fantastic achievement following an injury.
All in all, it was a positive weekend with Matt feeling determined to improve following his injury. Kurt landed in the points in both races and was pleased with this as consistency is something that he is looking for, however, knowing that he can achieve higher, he has the drive to continue pushing further.
Photographs courtesy of RBPS Photography.
Wigley Racing use these EBC Brakes products:
GPFAX Sintered Road Race Brake Pads
The GPFAX Formula Sintered Race pads are a direct replacement of the GPFA series. This formula is even higher in friction and created specifically to be used only on asphalt surfaces such as those found in race track conditions. Because of the super performance that they provide, these brake pads are a growing favourite choice of superbike racers. Another benefit of the GPFAX sintered material is that it now has even better heat cycling ability allowing the brake pads to be raced, cooled, then raced again.
Floating MC Discs/Rotors
EBC floating MC rotors or X & XC brake disc rotors as they are sometimes known, are ultra lightweight, best selling and best performance discs available for all modern racing sport bikes.
The rotors benefit from the EBC Brakes unique and patented S-Drive button system that features square sided rivets captured in square drive pockets on the hub and rotor. These are in place to allow the outer rotor blade to expand and contract freely under the heat of braking without suffering rivet lock.
