Richard Cooper: 'We made it happen when it counts!'

Richard Cooper took a stunning debut victory in tricky conditions at the weekend’s MCE British Superbike round at Oulton Park.

Taking a risk with a slick rear tyre in wet but rapidly drying conditions for the second race, Cooper pushed hard in the early stages to immediately gap his competitors.

Leading Tyco BMW’s Christian Iddon in the final stages of the race by two seconds, Cooper nearly lost his win when more rain came down in the final few laps. Iddon made his move on the final lap, but Cooper kept on his tail to slip around the outside and out drag his rival to the line.

“We’ve been really consistent, at both Silverstone and Oulton, even though we haven’t been quite as high up as we’d have liked,” Cooper told MCN after the race. “On Sunday, we made it happen when it counts – in the race! I took a few risks in the first couple of laps in the wet conditions with a slick tyre but that’s something I’ll always work on over the weekend. I’m one of the first to stick a slick in in those conditions and push as hard as I can.

“The gamble paid off and I can’t thank the team enough; they let me make the decision on tyres myself and it shows how much trust they have in me. This is the lift the team needed; you can’t beat a race win or the taste of that champagne.”

Not getting carried away, Cooper has identified qualifying as an area for improvement if he’s to continue pushing towards the front in upcoming rounds.

“We need to work on qualifying. I need to push harder in qualifying to make life easier for me come race day. You can’t compete against these guys from row three or four.”