It proved to be another weekend of mixed emotions for James Ellison at Cadwell Park, with a technical problem ruling him out of the second race before the lights went out.
The weekend had started well for Ellison and it looked like he had made a breakthrough with the rear grip issues that had been troubling him in recent weeks. After a successful day Friday, Ellison managed to put the Anvil Hire TAG Racing Yamaha 13th on the grid for race one.
The start of the opening race didn’t go to plan for the 37-year-old and he had dropped down to 17th by the end of the first lap. He soon found some pace though and a safety car on lap five brought the field back together.
Ellison started to move his way forward after the restart and found himself in 12th, before getting the better of Josh Brookes, Luke Mossey and Jason O’Halloran to work his way into the top 10 – eventually crossing the line in ninth.
Disaster would strike for Ellison and the team ahead of race two, with a technical problem forcing him to pull off the grid before the race began.
Looking back over a difficult day, Ellison said:
“I have mixed emotions about this weekend, it seems we have made progress with the rear of the bike and that showed in race one. My pace was strong and consistent all race long, and I posted my fastest lap at the end of the race, which I was pleased with.
“Race two was nobody’s fault, it’s a part of racing but I can’t say I’m not disappointed, the team worked so hard again this weekend and I can’t thank them, and everyone involved enough because they’re putting in so much effort. We now have to focus on the rest of the season and finish off strongly, which I believe we can.”
The day’s results leave Ellison 15th in the championship standings heading into the showdown decider at Silverstone in three weeks time.
