Brands Hatch Beckons – and Hopefully Better Luck – for HM Plant Honda
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 The HM Plant Honda team return to Brands Hatch this weekend for the re-scheduled opening round of the Bennetts British Superbike season. Superbike riders Cal Crutchlow and Leon Haslam should experience better weather than the snow, which forced the cancellation of the opening round and both will be hoping for better luck at the glorious 2.3-mile GP circuit than they experienced in the previous round at Oulton Park. Cal has been declared fit for the race after dislocating his right ankle in his race two fall, while Leon hopes to put more points on the board after being excluded from the race two results. Meanwhile, Steve Brogan will be out to make it three wins from three starts in the Metzeler National Superstock race, and return to the podium in the Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Championship. All grid positions were decided during qualifying back on 5th April, so both Superbike riders are on the front-row, while Steve holds pole in the Superstock and sixth for the Supersport race. There will be two practice sessions per class on Saturday 10th May, followed by warm-up sessions on race-day, 11th May. Leon Haslam – HM Plant Honda British Superbike – Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade 4th position – 1m 26.552s “With Oulton looking so good for our Honda Fireblades it was a shame that events conspired against me and Cal in one way or another – but that’s racing. We’ve put that all behind us now and we’re back to Brands where we had a solid qualifying. We know it’s going to be tough in Shakey Byrne’s back-yard, but we know we have to start digging deep for the results we deserve. For me, that’s podiums and wins – nothing less. It’s going to be interesting to see how the warmer conditions are going to make the bike feel, so we need to use the practice time wisely and get a good set-up and tyre combination for Sunday’s races.” Cal Crutchlow – HM Plant Honda British Superbike – Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade 2nd position – 1m 26.155s “Oulton was not the sort of weekend we wanted really. I’ve dislocated my right ankle and have a slight fracture to it, as well but it’s the damage to the tendons and the ligaments that’s the problem. I’ve ruptured the front two ligaments in the ankle so the back one is holding things together at the moment. I was in a cast, but my friends from Coventry City Football Club have helped out big time. Damien Delahunty the first team physio gave me an air-cast, otherwise known as a ‘Beckham Boot’ from when David Beckham broke his metatarsal in his foot. The benefit of the air-cast is that you can inflate it to the pressure you need, but also remove it for when you need a bath or physio. During the week I had 20 pin-pricks put into the injury to let the excess blood out – that’s not fun to watch, but the good news is that the swelling has gone down and that yesterday Toby Branfoot, BSB’s medical delegate has said he’s happy with the ankle and that I should be able to ride. I will have another check-up on Saturday morning, but the physio has done a fantastic job and I have movement in the ankle and some strength too!” Steve Brogan – Honda (UK) Racing British Supersport – Honda CBR600RR 6th position – 1m 29.885s British Superstock – Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade Pole position – 1m 29.391s “With pole at Brands in Superstock from back in April, I’m pretty confident we can convert that into a win or a podium at least really. The bike worked so well around Brands, but we mustn’t get complacent and we’ve also got to realise that the weather conditions and temperature this weekend are going to be much different. We need to make a few improvements to the HM Plant CBR600RR – it’s a fantastic package, but a few tweaks should see it suit me a little more. If we can do that in the short practice sessions then I’ll be heading for a podium to stay at the sharp-end of the championship.” Havier Beltran – HM Plant Honda team manager “It will be a bit strange this weekend as it’s not the normal Bennetts British Superbike meeting and we do not have a lot of track time before the racing on Sunday. We will also be experiencing some very different weather conditions, but the HM Plant Honda team will be working 100% to do the best we can. The weather forecast is for a warm weekend, so in the limited free practice time we have the guys will be looking to find the best set-up for the 20-lap race distance. Most of all in the Superbike class we’re looking for better luck than we experienced last weekend. Both riders want to win races, but with Cal we know he’s injured and wants to get on the bike. Safety is paramount, so we will be keeping a close watch on his progress. For Steve it’s podiums in both classes that are the aim. We’ve seen him dominate so far on the Superstock CBR1000RR Fireblade with two wins and another one would be perfect. In Supersport we know we have to make some small improvements with the CBR600RR but we will be working hard to give Steve the best bike for the job come Sunday.”
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