Fan favourite Chris ‘Stalker’ Walker secured an emotional debut Showdown position for himself and the Lloyds British GBmoto Kawasaki team today at Donington Park. Chris now steps up to be a ‘Title Fighter’ as the battle for the 2014 MCE British Superbike Championship enters the final three rounds. Injured James Ellison enjoyed an incredible point scoring ride on his comeback to competition.

Kicking the weekend off, Chris finished opening free practice in sixth, with James 20th as he continues his fight back to full fitness. Struggling to find a setting he was happy with, Chris continued to work throughout the practice sessions however was unable to match his early positioning in qualifying, finishing in 14th. Working on getting comfy on the bike and used to racing again, James steadily progressed throughout practice, qualifying in 15th.

With temperatures increasing considerably for race day, the opening race saw Chris and James embroiled in a six rider battle mid-pack. Keen to secure his Showdown position in the opening outing, Stalker rode a sensible race, crossing the finish line in eleventh – securing his and the team’s first Showdown appearance. Battling through to the very end, James marked his return to racing with a fantastic points scoring ride in 14th.

With James starting from 12th and Chris 15th in the second race, both riders enjoyed strong starts into the opening corner. As the race unfolded Chris worked his way through the pack to be challenging for a fifth place finish, however a mistake on the final lap saw him drop back to tenth. Despite being beaten up in the opening laps, James was able to battle back from 17th to finish in a well-deserved eleventh place.

For the past two rounds, the Lloyds British GBmoto Kawasaki bikes have been sporting the Kawasaki Ninja 30 logos, celebrating the brand’s 30th anniversary of the iconic Ninja name. The team will be running a special livery at the Silverstone round, further celebrating the anniversary.


Showdown contender Chris Walker said,

“To be honest I’ve been really nervous about this round. With my history at Donington and the similarities of this weekend, I’ve wrapped myself up in cotton wool in the build-up. I’ve not cycled as hard, I ran a little slower on the treadmill and at our test at Assen I kept a bit behind just so I wouldn’t risk hurting myself ahead of this round.

The weekend itself has been awesome, there’s no doubt I’ve been riding a bit tense so the results probably aren’t what they should be. We came here with a job to do though and we did it! Getting in the Showdown probably means more to me than most guys in the paddock, and I can’t put into words how happy I am, not just for me but for the team too. They made a big change over the winter and showed a lot of faith in me so I’m glad I can repay their faith with a Showdown position that they deserve.”

Continuing to impress with his speedy recovery, James Ellison said

“I’m relieved the weekend’s over and we’ve managed to get some points back on the board. I’ll admit I came into the weekend with higher expectations so am a little disappointed with the results, as it’s not where I should be or where the bike should be. That’s just the racer in me though and given my fitness level, this is a good result.

The weekend as a whole has been good, I’ve dug deep in every session and we’ve improved with every lap. We probably made the wrong decision on the tyre in the opening race, I ran an SC1 and a few of the guys around us had the 0. With the temperature going up for the second race we put the softer 0 in and had a strong race. It took me a bit of time to get used to it and I got a duffed up in the opening laps but then was able to catch and pass a lot of people so I’m chuffed!”

Lloyds British GBmoto Kawasaki Team Manager Terry Liquorish said,

“I’m really, really pleased for Chris. It’s been a massive weight on his mind these past two weeks and you could see his relief after race one. It’s been a fantastic season for him and we can now go to Assen with the gloves off as such and get stuck in. Being in the Showdown was our goal this year and we’ve achieved that so full credit to the whole team who have worked incredibly hard.

James had a fantastic weekend and I’m made up for him to be back on the bike and scoring points. That second race in particular was really impressive and although the position might not show it, he was running some really competitive laps towards the end and was back on the pace. He should leave feeling really proud and as he keeps improving and getting back to full fitness, it won’t be long until he’s back on the podium.”

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