Shropshire racers on fast track to success

Newcomer Andy Ruscoe has blown away all competition in the No Limits series in recent weeks – and Snetterton was no different as he again secured another stunning four straight wins.

The 24-year-old, from Shrewsbury, now has a huge 168-point advantage over his nearest rival with just 200 left up for grabs in the final two rounds.

Ruscoe said: “I never expected to take another four wins at Snetterton as my bike lacks power against the rest of the grid but I was strong on the brakes and carried good corner speed.

“Race one was wet and extremely slippy. I had very worn wet tyres so struggled to keep grip. Half of the circuit was dry so I was quick in that section but had a very good battle all the way to the end.

“A good start gave me an early lead and a comfortable five-second gap for race two, and it was the same for races three and four.

“The championship is looking strong for me at the moment but I am still looking for sponsors as it was a struggle to get to Snetterton.”

Will Bryant headed to Pembrey for rounds 12 and 13 of the NG Road Racing series knowing he needed to score some good points to still have a chance of taking the championship.

The 25-year-old, from Ruyton-XI-Towns, had one practice session to learn the track and get up to speed.

After starting fourth for the first Formula 400 class qualifier race, he was soon up to third. From there he was able to chase his rivals and learn the track.

“I started third for the championship race and I finished in the same spot,” said Bryant. “The Saturday race was the final Newcomers class round and it was a difficult race with other riders getting in the way of me passing my closest competitor.

“Halfway through I had to take to the grass to avoid another rider who almost high-sided in front of me. I lost a lot of time but managed to get back up to second, which meant I ended the championship in second place.”

The heavens opened on Sunday leaving the track wet and sticky for the second F400 race. But after battling from third on the first corner to second, Bryant finally led with two laps to go, which he held until the chequered flag.

“I was over the moon to take my first F400 win in such tricky conditions,” he said. “Once again I could not have done it without all my friends and family helping me out.”

Bryant sits third in the championship, 23 points behind the leader with one round to go.

The final NG Road Racing round takes place at Thruxton, October 7, while the No Limits series heads to Croft for round nine, September 23-24.

Jon Wright faces a race against time to get himself back fit after being taken out by a fellow rider.

The 42-year-old, from Shrewsbury, was left with a broken wrist and two broken fingers on his left arm, and a badly broken compound fracture to the little finger on the right.

He said: “I need two points to retain the Pre Injection 700 NG championship at Thruxton. I’m not sure how long the recovery period is but my next Thundersport GB meeting is in three weeks time, so my biggest race now is against fitness.”

Sidecar passenger Tom Bryant admitted it was ‘a fun step back down to club racing’ when he agreed to jump on board Stephen Jackson’s less powerful F2 machine at Pembrey.

“It was a fun escape from the pressure at the British championship and a good laugh playing on the Suzuki powered 600cc machine,” he said.

“On the Saturday, we finished third behind a TT regular and British championship competitor Dean Nichols, and additional TT regular Andy King.

“We again finished in third in a very wet race on Sunday despite setting the fastest lap times earlier that day. I had a blast.”

Shrewsbury’s James Evans, 32, finished 13th in both 600 class races, setting a personal best lap time.