| MAP Embassy Triumph celebrate victory in style at Brands Hatch |
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| Monday, 13 October 2008 22:00 | |
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MAP Embassy Triumph celebrate victory in style at Brands HatchRichards commemorates winning the British Supersport Championship with a victory
Starting from second on the grid, Richards shot into an early lead and was joined by Yamaha’s Steve Plater and world championship regular Joshua Brookes (Honda) in an exciting three-way battle for top spot. Richards was eventually able to edge ahead on his Daytona 675 and crossed the line for his fourth win of the 12 race series. In a dominant year, the Triumph rider ended up 53 points ahead of his nearest rival, Yamaha’s Hudson Kennaugh. Richards only twice finished outside the top three, when he rode cautiously to fifth in the wet at Mallory Park and at the title-deciding Silverstone race, where fourth place was enough to secure the title. After the race, Richards thanked all of his MAP Embassy team for their work during the season and with the squad not confirmed for 2009, Richards looks set to move back to the British Superbike class next year.In a good day for Triumph, privateer Rob Frost came home fifth on another Daytona 675. It was the best result of the season for the Team Buff rider, who was finally able to translate his good qualifying performances into a top six finish. The only downside of the day was an injury to Richards’ MAP Embassy team-mate Paul Young, who couldn’t race due to a broken arm. The factory development rider had been looking to continue his rich vein of form and was fastest in the morning warm-up session when he crashed out on his fourth lap. The celebrations for Richard’s success this season have been conducted in the knowledge that the MAP Embassy Triumph racing team will not continue in it’s present guise for the 09 season. Two weeks ago the team revealed that the withdrawal of primary backer EFS Group, following ‘catastrophic financial losses', which has left them with an insurmountable shortfall of funds. |