Supersonic Ducati rider Maxime Berger was the protagonist of an incredible incident at Donington Park on Sunday as the rear wheel of his Ducati 1098R suddenly dropped off as he came round Goddards to complete lap 6 of race 1.

After his excellent performance in qualifying, the Frenchman started from row 4 with fifteenth time. He immediately got into a good rhythm and was about to pass some riders ahead of him when the rear wheel of his Ducati came off, fortunately leaving Maxime unhurt in the strange and unexpected incident, which was caused by a defective rim. Clutch failure then brought an end to Berger's race 2, leaving it a weekend to forget for the Supersonic Team

"I'm disappointed and incredulous," said Berger. "I've never had to stop twice for two such strange reasons. The rim broke and I was lucky because it broke in a slow corner. I found myself on the ground without knowing what happened. In race two after the start, the clutch started to give me problems, until it completely stopped me after the first lap. Practice had gone well; I had a good feeling with the Ducati and a pace that would allow me to win my first championship points. But the team did a great job here at Donington and with their help I am sure the results will come in the coming races."