Isle of Man TT star Tim Reeves takes double victory
Thursday 27 September 2012
TT
Isle of Man TT sidecar regular Tim Reeves made a triumphant return to the British F1 Sidecar Championship just days after securing his fourth World Championship.
Once again partnered by Ashley Hawes, Reeves took double victory at the Assen Circuit in Holland, and a new lap record.
The weekend got off to the ideal start when the pair set the best time in the first qualifying session, but they were quicker still in the final session, shaving a further second off their time - their best lap of 1m 42.609s leaving them 1.566s clear of second placed team Jorg Steinhausen/Gregory Cluze.
Saturday’s opening 12-lap race saw Reeves and Hawes grab the lead and open up a gap, but the red flag came out on lap six due to an incident involving Mark Edwards.
The race was re-started over just five laps, and this time it was a lot closer. Having not made the best of starts, Reeves had to fight his way to the front, which he duly did. Steinhausen/Cluze stuck with Reeves and Hawes, but Reeves kept his rival at bay and took his first win of the weekend - albeit by just 0.108s.
Sunday’s race went the full distance and with a lightning start, Reeves and Hawes were in no mood to hang around. Instead, a series of fastest laps, including a new lap record of 1m 41.827s, saw them disappear into the distance and, at more tha a second a lap quicker than their nearest rivals Steinhausen/Cluze, they were able to ease off in the closing stages and come home 7.847s clear.
Reeves said:
“It’s been a superb weekend and, after winning the World Championship, I’m on a real high at the moment and everything’s going really well.”
“I came to Assen keen to continue the run of good form, but with no pressure on me the main aim was to have fun and ride the bike fast, which is exactly what happened. We had to change the engine after qualifying as we found a crack in one of the crankcases, but other than that had no problems at all.”
“The bike’s working really well and both Ash and I are performing at our best so we felt really good going into the races.”
He added:
“I’d opened up a good-sized lead in the first when the red flag came out and having used up a fair amount of my rear tyre, it was harder in the 5-lap dash.”
“You can’t afford to hang around though in such a short race and although I didn’t get the best of starts, I went for it. Jorg was close behind all race, but I felt strong and had a bit in reserve if need be. He did take my lap record though so I was determined to get that back in Sunday’s race and just got my head down as soon as the lights went green.”
“The lap times were really good, and consistent, and with a good lead I was able to back off a bit towards the end and make it two from two.”
“Like I say, it’s been a great weekend so a big thank you to all my sponsors for making it all possible especially the Haith family, Gunther Reuschling, Monster Energy, H&S Contractors, DFDS Seaways, Padgetts, Dave Hudspeth Carpets, Derek Brindley (Arrow Engineering), Q8 Oils and John Lawson.”