It was the opening MOPAR Canadian Superbike Championship (CSBK) round at Shannonville Motorsport Park this past weekend. Going into the weekend, the weather forecast was for periods of rain but thankfully the sun was shining and the heat was on for Ben Young on his #86 Scot-Build BMW S1000RR and the team to chase hard to clinch their first Superbike win.
Perfect weather and track conditions greeted Friday's practice sessions for the Collingwood Ont, rider. Young again with last year’s team members Scott Cartier and Willy Vass, along with new team member Steve Weir, put in some serious hours on and off the track to chase that perfect set up.
Young with the Scot-Build BMW S1000RR placed himself 3rd on the grid during Saturday afternoon's Dalton Timmis Insurance Pro Superbike Top Ten SuperPole session with a time of 1:04.754. This was 0.34 seconds off MOPAR CSBK Champion Jordon Szoke's pole position time.
Sunday's race again arrived with good racing conditions. Young got a good start in 2nd position, but heading into turn 2, series veteran Matt McBride nipped Young to retake his qualifying position of 2nd. McBride and Szoke broke away from Young slightly and started battling for the lead in the first 3 opening laps though Szoke started to pull a gap. Young knew he had to chase hard. While chasing McBride and taking back 2nd position, Szoke had already pulled a 5 second gap. Maintaining the gap to the final flag, Young crossed the finish line with a hard fought second place.
Young said, "We had a great weekend and good solid start to the season. We had a good set up for SuperPole on the Saturday, managing to get where we wanted to be as in lap times for Sunday's race. During the race, the wind picked up and had an effect which was unfortunate as this let Szoke get the gap. Stoked for 2nd place finish and we're heading to a track I like for round two. We’ll be chasing hard for the win. We are very fortunate in working again with our great sponsors and also with a new addition of Liqui Moly, who are supplying our engine oil needs. Looking forward in providing great results all season for these guys".
The MOPAR Canadian Superbike Championship returns to TSN for 2018. Visit www.csbk.ca for confirmed dates at times for broadcasts.
The Mopar Canadian Superbike Championship heads to Grand Bend Motorplex in Grand Bend, Ont on June 8-10, 2018.
Young’s partners for his 2018 CSBK Championship season include; Scot-build Developments, BMW Motorrad Canada, AXO Racing, Arai Helmets, Hindle Exhaust, Woodcraft, SBS, Motion Pro, Bickle Racing, Liqui Moly, ACF-50, Barrie Trim and Mouldings Inc.
He is also proud "Laps for Muscular Dystrophy" (Laps4MD) rider who's pledged to donate $1 for every lap he leads. These donations go to Muscular Dystrophy Canada to help make a difference in the lives of over 50,000 Canadians affected by a neuromuscular disorder.
To keep up-to-date on Ben Young throughout the year visit; www.BenYoungRacing.com, www.facebook.com/BenYoungRacing and on Twitter and Instagram: @benyoung_86.
From a press release
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