Chris Clark back in title contention after win and second at Donington Park.
Chris Clark had an almost perfect weekend in the latest round of the FIM Yamaha R3 BLU CRU World Cup at Donington Park this past weekend, racing to a win and a second place at the iconic British track to move to within fifteen points of the championship lead with six races remaining.
Fast from the off on Friday, Chris qualified P6 for the opening ten lap race, confident of a strong showing when the lights went out.
Aggressive from the start he was soon in contention for the podium and after a sometimes-frenetic race put himself in the position to challenge for the win on Saturday. With a multi-rider pack passing each other at almost ever turn, the action was fast and furious but Chris held his nerve to cross the line second, securing his first podium finish of the season much to the delight of his family, including his grandparents and older brother who had flown in for the event from the USA.
Sunday’s race was even more chaotic with a leading group of a dozen riders in the early stages exchanging paint with each other from the start. Chris was up for the challenge and after a couple of aggressive, but fair overtakes was soon in the lead. A crash behind, in which thankfully everyone walked away from unhurt, split the group giving Chris an almost two second lead. The chasing pack worked together and halved the gap with a lap to go but the #5 kept his composure to cross the line to win for the second time in his World Cup career.
The result moves Chris into fifth overall in the championship standings with three rounds (six races) to go.
Off track Chris helped raise over £33,000 for the Two Wheels for Life Charity. He performed in the now annual concert on Saturday evening in front of thousands, his ability to solve ten Rubix cubes faster than an onboard lap of the Donington Park circuit delighting the crowd.
Chris Clark: “It was a super good first race on Saturday. I was aggressive and got myself into second at the first corner from P6 on the grid. My goal was to be in the front group as much as I could for the whole race and not get pushed back into the pack. I dropped to seventh at one point, but I didn’t panic and with two laps to go I was leading with a couple of corners to go. I made a pass for second at the final corner and was able to hang on to take the podium. What a race, race two was. I couldn’t have imagined it going any better than it did. Off the start I struggled a little but then the adrenalin kicked in and I was fighting at the front. I made my way into the lead and then there was chaos behind. I saw the gap increasing but I had no idea what was happening I was just focused. Lap by lap I wanted to be consistent, and I was and I got the win. Overall, it was an incredible weekend and I am so happy. I am excited for France in just over a month and I want to keep closing the points gap to the championship leader. It was fun to be in stage for the concert and auctions and really special to get this win in front of my grandparents and family who were here watching. I cannot thank them and everyone who supports me enough.”
The post Yamaha R3 BLU CRU World Cup: American Clark Won at Donington Park appeared first on Roadracing World Magazine | Motorcycle Riding, Racing & Tech News.
