Burrows takes a step forward as Dawson takes a step back

THE local contingent involved in the Bennett’s British Superbike Championship support classes endured contrasting fortunes last weekend at Brands Hatch.

Jack Burrows enjoyed the best and possibly the worst of the outcomes on Saturday and Sunday in the R&G British Talent Cup.

The 15-year-old Cookstown High School pupil qualified well, finding himself fifth on the grid for race one but a near high-side at turn one and an off at the end of lap six put paid to his podium hopes.

“Going into race one, I didn’t get off the line very well, which made me have a massive moment in turn one,” he observed. “I high-sided myself and lost all the ground and was 10th going up the hill into turn two. But I started to work my way through the pack, picking boys off and I got up to sixth at the end of the fifth or sixth lap. I was catching the group for second and then I folded the front coming out of the second last corner, so I wasn’t very well pleased with that.”

Keen to make amends in race two, Burrows was again left frustrated, but buoyed by his overall pace as he settled for 10th in the end.

“Race two, I don’t know what happened, if it was me or the bike but I started fourth and finished 10th, which I wasn’t pleased about at all,” he added. “But, if a bad day is 10th in the British Championship for me, it’s OK. A couple of weeks ago I’d have taken that!”

Newmills teenager, Lewis Mullen also had a somewhat disappointing weekend at Branda Hatch where he recorded two top 20 finishes.

“Bit of a struggle again this weekend and the first weekend I’ve failed to gain any points,” he said. “I’ve been struggling to gain the feel and confidence in my bike on the front tyre that I had at round one and at the test which is effecting the way I enter the corners.

“There’s no-one more disappointed than me but unfortunately it’s not like a switch I can turn on and I have a great team around me to help me come back to my best where I feel I can run comfortably in the points.”

Prior to the weekend’s action, Killyman’s former British Junior Supersport Champion, Cameron Dawson, announced his decision to part company wih the Rokit Rookies team with whom he joined at the end of last year.

In a statement on Social Media, he said: “After four rounds of this year’s British Supersport Championship, I’ve had to make one of the toughest decisions of my career so far. Following mutual agreement, myself and the Rokit Rookies team have decided to part ways for the remainder of the 2025 season.

“Naturally, I’m disappointed not to be lining up on the grid [at Brands Hatch]. I want to sincerely thank everyone who continues to stand by me during moments like these. Your support means everything, and it’s only added fuel to come back stronger.

“I’d also like to express my gratitude to Leon [Haslam] and the entire Rokit Rookies team for the opportunity. I’ve had the chance to work with some truly great people, and I’m thankful for all the effort and belief you’ve shown me.”

Meanwhile, Dungannon’s Adam Brown, who is also competing in the Supersport series, suffered an up and down weekend, finishing 32nd in race one before returning to form in the feature race, coming home 21st after starting 33rd on the grid.

The action continues this coming weekend at Thruxton where Omagh’s Jamie Lyons will also be in action.

At Brands Hatch, Jamie’s results may not have looked overly positive, but he believes he and his team took a step in the right direction after finishing 20th and 19th in the Pirelli National Superstock Championship.

Having changed the suspension on his Honda to a new brand, the Omagh man felt much more comfortable and confident on track and while the results didn’t come at Brands Hatch, his lap times improved dramatically, which he hopes bodes well for the rest of the season.

“I took three and a half seconds off from the start of the weekend, which was quite good and I was only 0.4 of a second off my best ever time around there, whereas previously, at the other rounds, I’ve been two seconds off my PB,” he observed.

While pleased with his performance and the times he was recording, 20-year-old Jamie admits that it will take time for him to get used to how his bike now feels but he is already beginning to trust it once more.

“We’ve been struggling with front end feel but now with the new suspension it felt a lot better. But I’m now re-learning how hard I can push that and I have to get my head around trusting it,” he added.

“And that’s what we were doing all weekend and the second race was much more positive. I had a bad start in the second race which is unfortunate because I felt I had the pace to be battling for 14th if I had got away with them. But I had a bad start and I got stuck behind a few Looney Tunes and it took a lap or two to get past them.

“It was definitely a lot better and I’m happy with it and hopefully we can be comfortably inside the top 20 [at Thruxton] and maybe try to get into the points.”