BSB: Haslam: 'I didn't expect to be anywhere near Shakey'

Leon Haslam has admitted he was surprised to finish second to Shane Byrne twice this weekend after a plethora of technical difficulties hampered his JG Speedfit Kawasaki team from making further progress with the Kawasaki ZX-10R. 

Numerous technical problems including failing fuel pumps and an exhaust issue, as well as the bike frequently cutting out, left Haslam unable to complete as many laps as he’d have liked during practice as the team continue to dial in the new bike.

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Qualifying on the second row, Haslam went on to challenge for the lead in both of the Sunday’s races, but was forced to settle for second by the ever dominant Byrne.   

“I didn’t expect to be anywhere near Shakey this weekend,” he admitted. “I do think he had a bit in hand and also had a bit of bad luck but we should have taken advantage of that. 

“I feel we’re making good progress in lots of areas but we still need to conquer the main issue which is with that throttle response. We’ve made small steps, and while the linearity of power after the initial touch is much better that first touch is worse than we’ve ever had. 

“I feel we’re getting the most out of what we’ve got right now, but I also think that what we’ve got isn’t even at 50% of it’s true potential so to be challenging for wins with a bike that has that much more to come is exciting for the showdown.”  

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