Triumph Wins German Supersport Championship Title

Monday, August 11, 2008

Triumph racer Arne Tode secured the German supersport championship title at the Oschersleben Speedweek this weekend.

With a win in Saturday’s dry race followed up with a third in Sunday’s outing, the G-LAB team’s rider has secured the title with one race weekend remaining.

After once again putting his Daytona 675 on pole position in qualifying, the 23-year-old romped to a dominant win over Yamaha’s Australian rider, Damien Cudlin.

Race two, held after the eight hour endurance race, took place in wet conditions and Tode rode sensibly to take the final podium position, ahead of his championship rivals, to take the Daytona 675 to its first major title of the 2008 season.

The final double race round of the German championship takes place at Hockenheim in one month’s time.

In the UK, Glen Richards remains on track to secure the British supersport championship for Triumph with another podium finish in changeable conditions at Scotland’s Knockhill circuit.

The Australian, starting from the second row after a wet qualifying session, made a superb start to take an early lead, before being overtaken by youngsters Ian Lowry (Suzuki) and James Westmoreland (Honda). The MAP Embassy Triumph man was then able to run at a consistent pace to take the final podium slot in a race that was shortened due to a rain shower. With main title rival Hudson Kennaugh fifth when the race was stopped, Richards has now extended his championship lead to 30 points, with four races remaining. Two other Triumphs finished in the top 10, Rob Frost seventh on the Team Buff bike and factory tester Paul Young ninth on the other MAP Embassy entry.

The Knockhill round was also the scene of an emotional tribute to former Triumph rider Craig Jones, who died in a racing accident at the Brands Hatch world supersport round seven days earlier. Big screens are the circuit replayed his famous win on the Daytona 600 at the Donington Park British supersport round of 2004, while former team-mate Jim Moodie rode the bike on a lap of honour.

That win at Donington was Jones’ last race for Triumph. He later went on to ride for Petronas and Honda, but is fondly remembered by fans and Triumph employees for his two years on the British bike.