Anthony Johnson was back on the podium in the latest round of the Bemsee season at Donington Park.
He came home second in the open race of the weekend, before taking third in race two despite tyre issues. He rounded it off with another excellent second place finish in the final race of the weekend. He brings us up to date with his round below:
Race One – Qualified P3 and got a decent start, settling into third behind Sam Hirst Racing and Ted Wilkinson into turn one. Made the move on Sam into second at the old hairpin and set about chasing Ted down. He pulled a 1.5 second gap early on but I’d managed to claw it back to within a second before getting caught in lapped traffic at the chicane – nearly ran into the gravel at one point.
Had to settle for bringing it home safely in second. Ted ordinarily rides in BSB so can’t take points – it’s always nice to cross the line first but sometimes you have to know when you’re beat!
Race Two – Started on the tyre from race one and from the warm-up lap I could tell the rear had gone well past its best. Very little grip and corner entry was a real challenge. Tried to stay smooth and as gentle on the throttle as possible to prevent spin – luckily it was just good enough for third.
Race Three – Fresh tyre in, started P3 but didn’t get the best start and dropped back to fourth. Took a few laps to work past Sam Hirst and Rhys Forest who was riding really well. Getting past Sam was tough – every time I pulled out of the slipstream the wind just stopped me dead. Once through I tried to get my head down, but Ted was long gone by that point. Had to settle for second again.
Overall, a really positive weekend of racing though. Mega riding from Ted, Sam and Rhys – credit where it’s due. A huge thank you to all my sponsors – without every single one of you, this season simply wouldn’t be possible.
Still a little something to find with the Triumph but I think we are making real progress now. Cadwell next weekend – let’s see what we can do.
Images courtesy of sjg_punkrocknracing_pix