Daniel Brooks will be looking to bounce back this weekend as he heads to Knockhill for the latest round of the National Superstock championship.

Dan goes into the third round of the season on the back of a challenging second round at Donington Park. Though he is full of confidence as he heads north to Fife for the weekend.

Competing as part of the prestigious British Superbike Championship support package, the National Superstock class, Brooks arrived at Donington optimistic after a promising start to the weekend.

Friday’s dry conditions allowed the rider to demonstrate strong pace, finishing inside the top ten and within touching distance of his target position.

Reflecting on Donington Park, he said: “Round 2 was a tough weekend overall for me. Friday free practice went well in dry conditions. We finished P10 and were only 0.3 seconds away from where we wanted to be position-wise, so I knew if qualifying conditions had remained the same on Saturday, we would have been strong.”

Unfortunately, changing weather conditions transformed the complexion of the weekend, with heavy rain arriving for Saturday’s qualifying session.

Brooks continued: “Saturday qualifying wasn’t the same conditions unfortunately and it rained all day. We had to change our mentality heading into the session and use it as valuable wet-weather track time on this bike, which we’ve lacked so far. I wasn’t happy with the qualifying position, but the team gave me a bike that I could start to build confidence with. Lap by lap I was able to push more, but in a qualifying session that’s not ideal.”

Starting further down the grid left Brooks facing an uphill challenge on race day, with mixed weather conditions continuing to influence proceedings.

He said: “Saturday made Sunday difficult for me. We knew that in the dry we had a chance, even from the qualifying result, but the weather again played its part and made things challenging. After the race was restarted following a red flag, the rain arrived and it became a very 50/50 decision whether to stay on dry tyres or switch to wets.”

Brooks elected to remain on dry tyres, gambling that conditions would improve as the race progressed.

“I opted to stay on drys with the hope that the rain would stop and the track would dry again, which it eventually did, but unfortunately it was too late into the race. We finished P14.

“I’d like to say a huge thank you to all of my personal sponsors for their continued support throughout the season. Without their backing, competing at this level simply wouldn’t be possible. Thank you to Harringtons Builders PLC, Mastermac Surfacing, Anglian Home Improvements, Island Scaffolding, Pavemac, Mackness Contracting Ltd, ODM Services, RTS Waste and Nick Dirtstore for their continued belief and support. I’m determined to keep working hard and look forward to pushing for stronger results as we head into Knockhill.”

Despite the frustrations of Donington, Brooks remains positive heading into the next round at the Scottish circuit, a venue renowned for producing close racing with very unpredictable conditions.

The team will now analyse the data gathered from Donington and focus on building momentum as the championship heads north for Round 3.

With encouraging pace shown in dry conditions and additional experience gained in the wet, Brooks is confident stronger results are within reach at Knockhill as he continues his National Superstock campaign.

Images courtesy of https://www.facebook.com/CamipixPhotography