Defending champion Josh Brookes moved closer to the front again at Brands Hatch, as the VisionTrack Ducati rider claimed his best result of the season so far in fifth place in the final race on the Grand Prix circuit.
Brookes had started race two from the fifth row of the grid and after another difficult race, which included running off track at Westfield, he could only finish outside the points in 18th place.
The final race of the weekend started with a damp track, but with a multitude of tyre choices across the field. Brookes opted for full wets and he initially surged into the lead, before Danny Buchan moved ahead of him. However, shortly afterwards, the race was red flagged after Gino Rea’s Buildbase Suzuki blew up.
Re-started over just seven laps on a dry track, Brookes started from the front row. The reigning champion was initially fighting for a podium position when he took third on the fourth lap, but a tough move by Jason O’Halloran saw him pushed wide and lose ground, although he was still able to take a fifth place ahead of the chequered flag.
Brookes said: “The day didn’t start well at all but ended a lot more positively and we can definitely take away a few good things from the second race – fifth isn’t where I want to be finishing obviously but given where we’ve been at, it’s a start. The bike clearly works well in the wet but in the seven-lap dash, I was able to lap comfortably quicker than I have done all weekend so we definitely found something in the dry.
“The SCX tyre is still making the front feel bad but something changed and I was able to lap in the 1:25s bracket which was more satisfying. I’m taking it day by day at the moment but it’s nice to end the weekend on a positive note.
“I definitely found an improvement in the final race at Brands Hatch. We made a step up from the earlier race and if it’s confirmed that discovery is what we think it is, then that would be a positive step in the right direction. We will find out at Thruxton if it has worked so all I can do is remain positive.
"Thruxton is my favourite track of the year so I’m hoping it will all come together, and we can start to get the results we know we are capable of. I’d normally be saying I want wins but for now I’m hoping we can get on the podium, so that’s what I’m aiming for.”
Johnny Mowatt, Team Co-ordinator added: “Josh is clearly having some issues still and not getting the feeling he wants but there were definite signs of encouragement and leading the wet race and then taking a good, close fifth when it was pretty much dry will hopefully get his confidence up."