04.09.11 | Unlucky race day for Toseland
The first race weekend after the Superbike World Championship summer break proved unlucky for Brit James Toseland today when he followed up a 13th place finish in race one with a DNF in race two.
Like many other experienced riders on track at the German Nurburgring circuit, including race leader Noriyuki Haga, the Yorkshireman fell victim to horrific weather conditions and high-sided the BMW Motorrad Italia S 1000 RR motorcycle. It was a disappointing end to the race for Toseland, who had, at one point, been the leading BMW on track after factory rider Leon Haslam crashed out of a top six position and re-joined at the back of the pack.
The delayed 20-lap race, which was red flagged with four laps remaining, was blighted by heavy rain, causing puddles to form on track and reducing visibility as a result of the spray from the powerful Superbike machines. Toseland had made good progress from 17th on the grid, working his way up to 11th position, but he had dropped back to 13th before the crash occurred and was unable to re-mount and finish the race.
With the crash happening at a relatively slow pace, the BMW Motorrad Italia rider reacted quickly to try to avoid sustaining further damage to the right wrist that has taken a substantial amount of time to recover following a testing crash earlier in the season. His quick thinking seems to have paid dividends with the rider believing that he has not further injured the wrist, however he did take a blow to the elbow and will undergo an X-Ray as a matter of precaution.
“It’s been a difficult weekend,” said James. “We’ve had to work much harder than expected on the set-up for this track but I was pleased to finish in the points in race one. Race two was a different story and a crash was the last thing I needed, particularly at this stage in the season. The rumour mill is already in overdrive ahead of next season, so I find that the best way to deal with that is to just ignore the heresy and focus on getting the results.
“Needless to say that things didn’t go to plan, but on a positive note, at least I now know that I can crash and bounce back. For months I’ve been riding around my injury and approaching the races tentatively to ensure that I don’t setback my recovery and I feel like I don’t have to do that anymore. I’m as determined and hungry as ever to get back to the front of the races, where I believe I belong, so I need to just move on and keep that focus.”
Fan's comments
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JAN WITHERINGTON
Keep it up James, unlucky second race but hopefully you're not injured again. Still believe you've got it in you to win another championship, lets hope the season gets better for you and you can keep finishing in the points - role on next year, you are still one of the most exciting riders this country has produced and we all want to watch you going for it next year!
Jan