Gary Mason - Photo Credit: MSS Colchester Kawasaki
The MSS Colchester Kawasaki team left Silverstone scratching their heads after struggling to score any points in Northamptonshire. A pair of 14th place finishes for Gary Mason was as good as it got for them as the Lichfield rider continued to develop the 2012 ZX-10R.
Mason admitted he didn't particularly enjoy running in the midfield but hopes that he will enjoy the long-term benefits next season.
“Obviously the 2012 bike has a completely different electronics package to the 2011 superbike and we are still at very early days with it. We are playing around with chassis settings to try and be kind to the tyres and getting used to the new ECU. We are definitely going in the right direction and it is frustrating to run down the order but that's racing and it will make us stronger next year. We have some good settings for Brands so hopefully we can finish the season on a high.”
Teammate Ian Lowry left Silverstone with just a single point to show for his efforts on the 2011 machine and was annoyed that changes to set-up would move him closer to the front, only for them to make no real impact.
“To be honest I don't feel good and I'm not happy with the results – for me or the team. We hoped the set-up change we made would work for us but it was a lot worse, which was really frustrating and I was lapping a lot slower. It's not good enough but I'm hopeful we can use the team's setting from the previous Brands Hatch round to start on a good footing at the final round of the season.”
After starting the season so well, MSS Colchester Kawasaki have now gone nine races without a podium and Team Owner Nick Morgan is hoping for a return to form at the final round at Brands Hatch.
“The Superbike side of the garage is disappointing, we started the season so well, getting podiums and great finishes but something has gone wrong and we need to re-discover our form. The lads are grafting hard but something isn't clicking and we need to get to the bottom of it. There is no reason why we shouldn't be running with the top guys, hopefully we can turn the corner at Brands.”
