Beech notches up third top 10 finish on spin

TOP 10 FINISH . . . Ashley Beech at Donington Park

MOORSIDE'S Ashley Beech is up to 12th in the National Superstock 1,000 Championship standings after a good performance in the penultimate round of the series at Donington Park.

Riding for Jones Dorling Racing, Beech was eighth at the 2.5-mile circuit, his third consecutive top 10 finish.

A week after a season's best sixth spot at Oulton Park, Beech was full of confidence for round 11.

The hard work put in by the rider and the team to develop the new BMW S1000RR race bike has paid off recently. With a solid base setting established for the bike, the team are able to adjust the suspension and gears to suit each circuit.

Heavy rain during first practice saw few riders take to the track, yet Beech and the team were keen to try some minor adjustments, although not a great deal was learned in such tricky conditions.

The weather improved for the first of two qualifying sessions and Beech posted some impressive lap times to finish eighth fastest.

Despite changes to the gears to extract increased corner exit speed, he slipped to 10th place and started from row four on the grid.

Although Beech was recorded as third fastest through the speed trap, he felt something amiss with the bike.

EXHAUST

On inspection, it was found that the carbon-fibre exhaust casing had overheated causing the bike to lose power.

A fellow competitor lent the team a spare exhaust system which was fitted in time for the green light ­- and what a dramatic race it turned out to be.

An incident involving two riders brought out the safety car, before the race was stopped as debris was strewn across the track.

On the restart, Beech again started well and fought hard to cross the line in eighth place. The final round of the championship is at Brands Hatch on October 16.