Superbike success for McGuinness at North West 200

May 19th, 2012

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Morecambe’s John McGuinness enjoyed another successful trip to the International North West 200 road races this week when he swept to victory in Saturday’s Superbike race. The Honda TT Legends rider came home over 4 seconds clear of Alastair Seeley and backed this up with a brace of thirds in the feature Superbike race and opening Supersport encounter. He also took fifth in the second Superstock and Supersport races on the Padgetts Honda’s.

Having qualified on the front row for all three of his classes – Superbike, Supersport and Superstock – the week didn’t get off to the greatest of starts for John with 15th in Thursday’s wet Superstock race but with perfect weather on Saturday, he was back to his best. The day started well with a very strong third place in the opening Supersport race and although William Dunlop was away at the head of the field, John made Alastair Seeley work all race for second place. At the chequered flag, John was only a second behind the Suzuki rider and a podium was a great result for John and the Padgetts team.

Next up was the opening Superbike race and having grabbed the holeshot, John and Seeley soon opened up a gap over the rest of the field. Seeley went into the lead towards the end of lap one but when he overshot Church Corner a lap later, John happily accepted the lead and with his advantage over second place as high as ten seconds at one stage, he was able to ride to his signals and control the race from the front. Comfortable in the lead on the Honda TT Legends machine, he was able to ease off in the final laps and claim another great win, his 6th around the 8.9-mile circuit.

Two more excellent rides followed in the second Superstock and Supersport races and John brought the Padgetts machines home in fifth on each occasion, the Superstock result in particular a great effort and only half a second adrift of the final podium place. That left the feature Superbike race as John’s final race of the weekend and another superb start saw him lead the way on the opening lap. Local favourite Seeley wasn’t to be denied though and although there was only a second between them at half race distance, he edged away and John had a battle to keep Michael Rutter behind him for second. He squeezed by though on the fifth lap and so John had to settle for third for his third podium of the day.

Speaking later, a delighted John said, “What can I say, it’s been a great day for me and, apart from the wet race on Thursday evening, I’ve finished every race inside the top 5. To take my 6th win here, and another on the Superbike, was especially pleasing and although Alastair had a bit more pace than me, it’s all about getting past the chequered flag first and that’s what I did. The bike was fantastic and when I saw ‘+10′ on my pitboard I knew that all I had to do was bring the bike home – if someone could take that amount of time out of me in the final two laps, I think I’d have to hang my leathers up!”

“I tried as hard as I could in the second Superbike race but Alastair and Michael just had that bit extra and I had to settle for third. If someone had offered me a win and a third in the Superbike races before I came here I’d have readily taken them so I’m very happy. Likewise the Supersport races and the third place in the opening race was one of my best rides on a 600cc machine. Alastair’s a lot smaller than me so more suited to the Supersport bikes but I kept him honest throughout and it was very satisfying to run at the same pace as him. I’ve throughly enjoyed my racing today and I’m really happy with how all of the bikes are performing so it’s set me up nicely for the TT and I’m looking forward to getting over to the Island and giving it my best shot once more. I’d love to get another win there but what will be will be and I’ll just look at doing my best and having a good, safe fortnight.”

John now heads to the Isle of Man TT Races where he’ll be hoping to add to his haul of 17 wins. Practice around the 37.73-mile course gets underway on Monday 28th May.

Picture by Stephen Davison – Pacemaker Press International

Phil Wain
Freelance PR

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Spirited ride by McGuinness at Oulton

May 9th, 2012

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Morecambe’s John McGuinness put in a fine ride at his local Oulton Park circuit on Bank Holiday Monday to finish in 9th place in round 3 of the Metzeler National Superstock 1000cc Championship. Competing in the series for the first time since Easter, John showed strong form throughout practice and qualifying on the Padgetts Honda Fireblade and his efforts were rewarded on race day to see him pick up his first points of the season.

Tenth in opening qualifying on Saturday, a strong performance in Sunday’s final qualifying session saw John take exactly a second off his time and a lap of 1m39.383s meant he lined up in 7th place and on the second row of the grid. Conditions on race day weren’t expected to be good but, fortunately, the predicted rains stayed away and the 14-lap race got underway in dry weather. However, a sluggish start by John, later diagnosed as a clutch problem, meant he got pushed back in the usual opening lap melee and he found himself back in 12th place as he went onto lap 2. He was soon up to 10th though and although he was unable to overtake any other riders, he was running the same pace as the front runners and was only 3 seconds adrift of third and the final podium place. As the race went into its final third, John was right on the back of a three-way dice for 8th but when Adam Jenkinson crashed out of 6th, the race was ended prematurely and John was promoted up a spot to 9th for a strong finish as he heads into the pure road racing season.

Speaking aftewards, a satisfies John said; “Oulton’s always been kind to me and I always enjoy coming here so it was good to get a run out on the Superstock bike and even more pleasing to end the weekend with a strong performance. I had a few niggling little issues in qualifying but I was happy with the final session and 7th on the grid boded well. One of the problems we’d had was with the clutch and although we thought it had been resolved, it came back on the warm up lap and when the race came under starters orders it was ‘grabbing’ a little and I had to be really careful so as not to get a jump start. That meant I was more cuatious than normal and that’s why I got pushed back a few places like I did. I regrouped though, got stuck in and was really happy with my lap times, which were really competitive. Ninth’s a little bit frustrating as I felt a top six finish could have been ours today but it was a good ninth and it puts me in a really good frame of mind for the important month ahead. The North West 200 and Isle of Man TT are very much on  the horizon now so with a good result today, I can now look ahead to the roads and fully focus on the job in hand.”

The International North West 200 takes place on the 8.9-mile road circuit linking the towns of Portstewart, Coleraine and Portrush with first practice getting underway on Tuesday 15th May. John will be action on the Honda TT Legends Superbike and Padgetts Honda Supersport and Superstock machines.

Picture by Glynne Lewis

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Freelance PR

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Ninth place for McGuinness in opening World Endurance round

April 16th, 2012

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John McGuinness and his Honda TT Legends team were left to reflect on what might have been at the opening round of the 2012 World Endurance Championship as they finished in 9th place. Competing at the French Magny Cours circuit, John and team-mates Cameron Donald and Simon Andrews were looking good for a top six finish in the 24 Hour race but a crash in the final third dropped them down the order and they had to settle for the aforementioned 9th place, the 6th highest EWC bike.

Riding with Donald, Andrews and Gary Johnson, John posted a time of 1m43.213s during his final 30-minute qualifying session, which saw overcast conditions at the French circuit. It was Andrews who posted the fastest lap for the team but, being the fourth rider, his times didn’t count towards the final qualifying time. So, when the combined fastest laps of John, Donald and Johnson were added, the team started the race from 11th on the grid although Andrews replaced Johnson for the punishing race.

A superb start by the team saw them jump up to 5th place and they stayed in this position until an unscheduled stop by Andrews saw him pit to have a quickshifter problem resolved. Although the team dropped back to sixth they were soon back out on track but on Sunday morning, the rain returned and Donald was caught out, crashing out at 150mph. He managed to push the damaged Honda back to the pits and 20 minutes later, they were back in the race, eventaully ending the gruelling 24 hours in 9th place for 19 valuable points.

Speaking afterwards, John said; “After spending so long in the top six, we’re all slightly disappointed to have ended up in 9th but it’s a punishing event and anything can happen to anyone at anytime, it was just our turn to suffer misfortune this time around. We had a few problems during practice and so were a little disappointed to have only qualified in 11th place but the start position wasn’t that crucial when you think the race is 24 hours long and we all put in some good stints in the early stages to get ourselves inside the top six.”

“We were able to consolidate our position despite the harsh weather conditions, which saw rain and extremely cold temperatures make riding the bike tough going. This type of racing can bite you at anytime though and it was Cameron’s bad luck to be out on the bike when the rain fell and down he went. Luckily he was ok and he put in a great effort to bring the bike back to the pits and although we dropped back a few places, the boys in the pits did a superb job getting us back out on track and we were able to bag ourselves some vaulable points.”

John’s next outing will be at Oulton Park on May 5-7 where he’ll be back on the Padgetts Honda for the Metzeler National Superstock 1000cc Championship.

Pictures by Honda Racing

Phil Wain
Freelance PR

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McGuinness denied podium finish at British Superstock opener

April 10th, 2012

Morecambe’s John McGuinness was denied a podium finish in the opening round of the National Superstock 1000cc Championship at Brands Hatch on Easter Monday when he fell victim to the treacherous conditions with just 4 laps of the race to go. The Padgetts Honda ace had put in a storming ride, having led in the opening laps but with rain to continuing to fall, he slipped off with third place within his grasp.

With qualifying split into two groups due to the large field of riders, the weekend started well for John with a solid 6th place in his opening qualifying session but with slightly better conditions on Sunday afternoon, he was able to reduce his time signficantly and a superb lap of 47.470s placed him second in his group and 4th overall, which meant he lined up on the front row of the grid for Monday’s 24-lap race.

The mixed weather conditions of qualifying were replaced by full wet weather on Easter Monday but a brilliant start to the 22-lap race saw John grab the holeshot and lead the field for the opening three laps. Utilising his experience, he was running a smooth, consistent pace and although a fourth lap sort out shuffled him back to fourth, he was back up to third when Jonathan Railton crashed out ahead of him a few laps later. Fellow Honda rider Jason O’Halloran then moved ahead of him on lap 15 but John was right in his wheeltracks when he highsided out of the action, fortunately without injury, on the 19th of 22 laps.

Speaking afterwards, a disappointed, but philosophical John said; “In all my years of racing I’ve never known a race like that – conditions were terrible and I lost count of how many slides I had, it was literally every corner, every lap! I got the perfect start and although it’s hard to know what pace to set in wet conditions like today, I just went at the speed I felt was comfortable. A couple of the boys went by me but I felt strong even if it was like riding on a double-edged sword. There was no grip and it was cold but when Jason came by I wanted to stay with him as I wanted a podium today. The bike just went away from me though and it happened so quick there was nothing I could do. I feel for the team as they did a great job all weekend and the bike was flying but we’re in one piece and can look forward to the rest of the season knowing we’ve got the pace to run at the front of the field.”

John now heads straight to Magny Cours, France for the opening round of the World Endurance Championship where he’ll link up with his Honda TT Legends team. Practice for the event gets underway on Thursday.

Picture by Glynne Lewis

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Freelance PR

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Disappointment at Macau for McGuinness and SMT Honda

November 22nd, 2011

John McGuinness and the SMT Honda team were left to rue what might have been at Sunday’s Macau Grand Prix when the Morecambe rider finished in sixth place in the shortened ten-lap race. Having qualified in second around the 3.8-mile Guia circuit, McGuinness was hoping to challenge for the race win on the Roadhouse-liveried Honda but tyre problems saw him slip gradually through the pack and he had to accept sixth place, some 14 seconds adrift of race winner Michael Rutter.

It was a problematical week at the Chinese colony with unseasonal weather conditions seeing heavy rain, which resulted in numerous delays to the schedule. The action got underway with free practice on Thursday morning and a solid session saw John ease his way back in around the demanding armco-lined venue with the sixth fastest time but the rain then began to fall and the afternoon’s opening qualifying session was then cancelled with Friday following a similar pattern.

That meant that qualifying was pushed back to Saturday and limited to a single one-hour session. With track conditions far from ideal, John utilised all his experience of Macau to post the second fastest lap with a time of 2m26.951s although he was plagued by traffic during the session and wasn’t able to get as close to pole man Rutter as he would have liked. Nevertheless, both he and the team were feeling confident going into the race, which was pushed back a day to Sunday and cut from 15 laps to 10.

Despite oil and sand on a number of the fast corners, due to a car incident, the race went ahead and a good start saw John in third place as the pack headed through the 170mph Mandarin Corner. A smart overtaking manoeuvre on Rutter at the following Lisboa Bend enabled him to move up to second but that was as good as it got and, pushed back to fourth by the end of the second lap, he was already experiencing a lack of grip, something that worsened as the race wore on. Indeed, he slipped back into the clutches of Jeremy Toye and Gary Johnson and could only watch as they swept by although he did hold on to sixth place at the chequered flag.

Speaking later,a disappointed John said; “It hasn’t been the easiest of weeks for anyone and although I was 2nd on the grid, it wasn’t as quick as I would have liked due the traffic and the fact that each time I got close, Michael went quicker. Everyone was in the same boat and the lack of track time meant we struggled a bit for set-up although I was happy with what I was running and we felt confident of challenging for a podium, at least.”

“The first couple of laps of the race went well and, with a good start, I was hanging right in there with the front pack. I did what I wanted by getting past Michael early on but, unfortunately, I was running into tyre problems as early as the second lap. I’d slipped back to fourth by then and simply couldn’t run the pace of the front three so much so that Toye and Johnson were soon right on my tail. I was powerless to do anything when they came by and after qualifying second, sixth place isn’t what me, nor the team, came here for. It’s really disappointing to be honest and I don’t seem to be having much luck round here at the moment but it’s a finish and we’ll have to come back stronger next year.”

Team boss Robin Croft added; “It was a long week and one of those meetings where you didn’t really know if, or when, you’d be out on the track, but John did a great job in qualifying and we did 18 laps with a race tyre in that session and morning warm-up so felt confident we had a good set-up going into the race. The pile-up in the car race put everyone on edge but the guys decided to race although John’s race was over almost before it had begun. The tyre was just spinning up and he had no grip so 6th was a disappointing outcome for all of us as we’d all hoped for a spot on the rostrum. Still, it was an enjoyable trip and there’s always next year!”

John now heads to the NEC, Birmingham for the Motorcycle Live show with an announcement of his 2012 plans expected shortly.

Picture by Stephen Davison/Pacemaker Press International

Phil Wain
Freelance PR

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Fifth place for McGuinness at Qatar

November 15th, 2011

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Morecambe’s John McGuinness completed his World Endurance Championship season on Saturday with a fine fifth place at the final round in Qatar. Riding this time with Glen Richards and Keith Amor, the Honda TT Legends team were on the pace throughout and, after qualifying in ninth place, they were able to advance significantly forward in the 8-hour race to secure their third fifth place finish of the year.

After a solid start in first practice, all three riders improved their times in the second and final qualifying session with each getting thirty minutes of track time around the 3.43-mile Doha circuit. The team’s overall combined time of 2m03.381s was good enough to qualify them in ninth place overall. When the race got underway on Saturday afternoon, Richards set a blistering pace in the first stint taking numerous places and John was able to consolidate the team’s position. Indeed, they were lying in third as he handed over to Amor and over the next few hours, positions changed frequently. As darkness fell, the team were in fifth position and it was John who had the honour of not only completing the final stint of the 8 hours but also of the 2011 season. The fifth place meant the team ended the year in 7th place overall in the Championship with 43 points.

Speaking afterwards, a pleased John commented; “We’ve finished three races this year and finished fifth each time so, for our first year in the Championship, I think that’s a fantastic achievement. Qualifying went well and although I knew it was going to be tough out there, once again we strung together a pretty faultless race and with no issues we were able to bring the bike home for a good finish. It’s quite a unique place to be racing and I was honoured to take the final stint for the team so the 8 Hours of Qatar is another box ticked in my ‘things to do’ list! I’ve got to say a big thanks to everyone in the team – they’ve been mega all year long and with a lot of work going on behind the scenes, especially the ABS project, they’ve done an awesome job. It’s all over for them but I’m heading off to Macau now and I’m really looking forward to getting on board the SMT Honda – it won’t be easy but I’ll certainly be going for the win once more!”

The Macau Grand Prix gets underway on Thursday with first practice whilst the 15-lap race takes place on Saturday, 19th November.

Pictures by Honda Racing

Phil Wain
Freelance PR

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Special Offer on brand new McGuinness T-Shirt

October 12th, 2011

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Special offer on the brand new updated John McGuinness ‘Does what it says on the tin’ T-Shirt at RedTorpedo.com

20% off RRP until 19th October. Just use the code MISSILE at the checkout to get your discount. This offer includes FREE SHIPPING to the UK.

Check it out now!

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McGuinness takes third at Darley

October 3rd, 2011

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John McGuinness made his annual visit to Darley Moor for the ‘Stars at Darley’ meeting at the weekend and the Honda TT Legends rider ensured it was a successful visit to the Derbyshire venue when he finished third in both of the 10-lap races.

Riding his TT-winning Honda Superbike, John’s main opposition came from the Buildbase BMW pairing of Richard Cooper and Barry Burrell and, indeed, it was these two who topped the timesheets in qualifying with John slotting into third with a time of 54.4s.

With dry conditions all around the 1.5-mile circuit, a good start to the opening 10-lap leg saw John complete the opening lap in second just behind Cooper but ahead of Burrell. The Bishop Auckland rider pushed him back to third a lap later and although John was able to keep them within his grasp for a couple of laps, they eventually pulled clear. However, some four seconds ahead of fourth placed rider Luke Stapleford, John was safe in third and took the chequered flag for a good podium position.

The second leg later in the day saw an almost exact replica of the first with John initially splitting Cooper, the recently crowned National Superstock 1000cc Champion, and Burrell before they were able to take control. Lapping quicker than he had done in the first leg, he was again able to hold off Burrell in the early stages before sticking with both riders for the first third of the race. They soon began to edge away once more so John settled for his second third place of the day, again comfortably clear of fourth placed Stapleford, to wrap another fine day at Darley.

Speaking later, a pleased John said: “It’s always good to come and support Darley Moor and I’m pleased to have come away with a couple of third places. I’ve lost count of how many years I’ve been coming here but the organisers have always been good to me so it was good to have another run round. Obviously, I would have liked to have taken the Trophy again but Richard and Barry were just that little bit too good for me today. They know the track inside out and had that bit extra pace required but I stuck with them in the early stages of each leg and was comfortable in third so it’s been a good weekend. It was great to be racing the Honda TT Legends Superbike once again so a big thanks to the team and also to the fans for cheering me on.”

Picture by Stuart Baker – www.sbfotosport.com

Phil Wain
Freelance PR

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McGuinness takes superb 5th at Le Mans 24-Hour World Endurance

September 25th, 2011

John McGuinness

Morecambe’s John McGuinness scored a superb 5th place at the Le Mans 24-Hour World Endurance Championship event at the weekend, riding once again for the Honda TT Legends team. Riding with team-mates Cameron Donald and Keith Amor, the trio started the race in tenth place and ran in fifth for the majority of the 24 hours, going on to complete an amazing 819 laps of the French circuit in the 24 hours!

Qualifying went well for the team with Donald particularly impressive around the 2.597-mile circuit and he took 4th in his group with John 11th and Amor 22nd. When the times were combined, the team found themselves in 10th spot overall with an overall lap of 1m40.283s. In the race itself, Donald completed the first stint and got the team up to 5th place, a position that both John and Amor were able to consolidate throughout the race. It was close between themselves and Team Bolliger and the Yves Molch Endurance squads but despite their relative lack of experience, John and his team-mates more than held their own and without any major problems, finished in an excellent fifth, just as they had done in the opening 24-hour race of the season back in April, the Bol d’Or.

Speaking afterwards, a happy, but tired, John said: “That’s two fifth places now in the two biggest races of the World Endurance Championship and so we’ve got to be pleased with that. Both the Bol and Le Mans are huge, historical races and everyone’s played a huge part in getting us to the end. The week started well in practice and qualifying and although I was a bit disappointed with my final session, it turned out the wheel had spun on the rim and that was what causing the vibration I was feeling from the rear of the bike. Tenth gave us a good platform and the race itself was long and hard but we had no major issues amongst any of us so I just tried my best and kept out of trouble – I think I did around 300 laps so I’m going to sleep well tonight!”

“It was unbelievable out there at times and so smoky – I think the fans were burning anything and everything they could lay their hands on – so it was a really brilliant atmosphere! We weren’t necessarily the fastest team out there but we were very consistent and able to turn some strong lap times whilst the boys in the pits did an awesome job with both the strategy and and the stops themselves. To have competed in the race was a huge honour and it’s definitely ticked a few boxes for me and the fact that we finished in a strong fifth place makes it even more special.”

John now heads back to the short circuits and the Stars at Darley meeting at Darley Moor, Derbyshire with the event taking place next weekend, October 1-2.

Picture by Honda Racing

Phil Wain
Freelance PR

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Success on the Mount for McGuinness

September 18th, 2011

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John McGuinness ensured his annual visit to Oliver’s Mount, Scarborough was a successful one at the weekend when he took his Padgetts Honda to no less than three runner-up spots. The Morecambe Missile was instantly at home around the woodland circuit and was on the pace in both the wet and dry, pushing Northern Ireland’s Ryan Farquhar in each of their Superbike battles.

After taking second in the earlier heat, John made a brilliant start in Saturday’s opening leg of the Darran Lindsay Superbike trophy race and led the field round at the end of the first of 8 laps. However, on lap 3 the red flag came out due to an incident and was eventually re-started over 4 laps. It was again a repeat performance from John when the lights turned green and he led Farquhar as they swept onto their second lap. Lapping close to a personal best lap around the undulating road circuit, John looked like he’d hold on for the win but Farquhar dived up the inside at Mountside Hairpin and he had to settle for second, just 0.9s adrift.

Whilst Saturday’s conditions were perfect, Sunday’s were very different with fog hitting the seaside venue in the early morning and then rain showers occurring during the course of the afternoon. Again realising the importance of good starts for the narrow Oliver’s Mount circuit, John made the perfect getaway in the second leg of the Darran Lindsay Trophy event and it soon became a two-horse race between himself and Farquhar. At the end of four laps, there was just 0.7s between them but Farquhar was in determined mood and he took over the lead on lap 6 to again force John into accepting second.

That just left the feature International Gold Cup race, one which John won back in 1999, and it followed a similar pattern as the previous two Superbike races only this time Farquhar grabbed the holeshot. John sat on his back wheel in the early stages but wet-weather specialist Farquhar wasn’t to be denied his first Gold Cup and so John took his third second place of the weekend, wheelying his way along the start and finish at the end of the 8 laps.

Speaking later, a pleased John said; “It was 15 years ago that I made my debut at Scarborough and I enjoyed the 2011 event as much as I did the 1996 one. It’s such a good circuit to come and ride at and it was again great to see a big crowd so, hopefully, we’ve all put on a show for the fans. I was really pleased with my starts this weekend and really thought I had the better of Ryan on Saturday but he somehow did me on the brakes and there was no way back for me. I was as late as I possibly could be going into Mountside yet he still came by and he had his bike totally under control – it was 100% neat and tidy so fair play to him!”

“Sunday was a lot harder due to the weather and it was certainly tricky in the Gold Cup race. I enjoyed it though even though half the circuit was bone dry and half of it was wet through! I had great feeling from the Padgetts Superstock bike and that allowed me to keep Ryan honest in all three of the races and I couldn’t have done anymore. To come away with three second places is very pleasing and it’s been a great weekend for both me and the team so we’re all going home happy.”

John now heads back to the short circuits and France where he’ll be taking part in next weekend’s Le Mans 24-Hour World Endurance Championship race with his Honda TT Legends team.

Picture by Stephen Davison – Pacemaker Press International

Phil Wain
Freelance PR

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