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FIRST POINTS AS KENNAUGH GRABS 11TH AT CROFT - Malcolm - 16-05-2011 Splitlath Motorsport celebrated their first points of the season after a heroic ride by Hudson Kennaugh saw him cross the line 11th in today’s first MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship race at Croft. Kennaugh was forced to start the race from the back of the grid after he ducked into the pits during the warm-up lap, and had been poised to start from pit lane until the start was delayed due to a sudden rain storm. This meant he was able to line up, but had to sacrifice his 25th grid spot for 34th. A good start saw him make up several places, and even running a little wide at the opening turn did little to hamper his pace and he crossed the line 22nd at the end of the first lap. In a race which saw many of the championship’s big hitters struggle, Kennaugh put his head down and fought his way up through the order, passing leading names including Tommy Hill, Dan Linfoot and James Westmoreland. By Lap 14 he had reached 11th place after making a move on Chris Walker, and quickly pulled a bit of a gap, holding the place for the remainder of the race to finish 11th, picking up his maiden points of the season and narrowly missing out on a top ten. “I’m really pleased with that, it was a good race for me and the team. The rain has always been a great equaliser and today we proved that to be true. We are definitely heading in the right direction and it’s a good boost to us all to see that our Aprilia can be competitive when it’s on an equal playing field with those other machines.” However Race Two wasn’t so good for Kennaugh. After another good start he was knocked off the track by another rider while running in 19th spot. Although he was able to rejoin, his bike had suffered some damage and he was forced to retire. Team-mate Jenny Tinmouth had a difficult weekend as she made her debut as the first ever female to contest the hard-fought series. Her first race came to an end on Lap Two when she crashed out at the first corner. Unharmed, she lined-up for the second race later this afternoon, but this time suffered a technical problem and retired on Lap Six. “I’m keeping positive, it was good to get some time on the bike and we made some good progress with the suspension settings,” she said. “Changes we made between the races really seemed to work. “Obviously I’m gutted with the result and the problems we encountered along the way, but I’m very grateful for all of the hard work put in by the team to solve problems and get me through the weekend. “It was good to qualify and get a couple of race starts under my belt, and I think we’ve definitely made progress in the right direction with the bike.” Team Manager John Dimbylow added: “What a great first race for Hudson, and a fantastic effort from all of the team to get him up there today. We have made such a big step this weekend, and that result has given us all something to be pleased about. “It was unfortunate for Jenny that she had the crash but she’ll bounce back. These things sometimes happen in racing but she’ll come back stronger next time.” “We came here seeking improvement with the development of our RSV4 machines and I think we’ve certainly achieved that today.” Pics by - Full Throttle Imaging