BSB: Stapleford set for Thruxton wildcard with Smiths BMW

Reigning British Supersport Champion Luke Stapleford will be back in action at this weekend’s sixth round of the MCE British Superbike Championship as he joins Smiths Racing BMW for a wildcard appearance.

Having made his Superbike debut in the final rounds of last season after wrapping up the 600cc title early, Stapleford is already accustom to the premier class. Racing full-time in the World Supersport series, which is currently on its summer break until September, he came back to Britain for a one-off ride with his Profile Triumph team at Snetterton last weekend to take a victory and second place.

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Joining Howie Mainwaring and Jakub Smrz as the team expands to three riders, Stappleford has his eyes set on improving the 12^th placed best result he scored at Silverstone last year.

“I am really excited about the opportunity to get back out on a Superbike again, especially with the Smiths Racing BMW team as we have always got on well together,” he said. I don’t really know what to expect as the BMW is a bit different to what I am used to.

“I really enjoyed my Superbike experience before but when I rode one last year I was racing in both Superbike and Supersport, so having one focus should make it a little bit easier compared to jumping from one to the other.

“Last year I really enjoyed Thruxton on the Supersport bike and I can’t wait to see what the Superbike feels like there; I can imagine it will be a little bit more of a handful but I am under no pressure and I just want to see how I can stack up against Howie and Jakub.

“I know that BSB has been incredibly close this season, and Thruxton is naturally a place where everyone is even closer, so I just want to make the most of the opportunity, enjoy the weekend and do the best job I can for the team.”

Team manager Rebecca Smith added: “We have always had a great relationship with the Staplefords and as the WSBK calendar now allows, we thought it was a great time for Luke to have an outing on our BMW at Thruxton. We are looking forward to welcoming him into the team and are hopeful of some good results this coming weekend.”

 

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