Suddenly the new FIM Sidecar World Championship is almost here with the opening round scheduled over the weekend of 14-16 April in Le Mans.
2021 saw an exceptionally close five-way battle, possibly the tightest for years. All bets are off for 2022 because those hungry young guns are back, whilst the old guard, including the reigning and former champions, are all determined to retain or reclaim the title.
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The way time is running, we will be into full swing with racing action before we know it.
Our season kicks off at Oulton Park, with Knockhill and Brands Hatch the next up.
It is then off to Cadwell Park for the excitement and spectacle of the Sidecar Revival Festival. The early August date is guaranteed to appeal to all sidecar fans, who have demonstrated in previous years how much they welcome the variety of outfits and personalities on show.
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With all eyes on a full Molson Group British Championship in 2022, it’s important to note the fourth round will be at the popular and now well-established Cadwell Park Sidecar Revival.
This event has become a favourite with teams and spectators alike, and with restrictions imposed by two years of pandemic now easing, the entry is expected to be bigger than ever.
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After a difficult yet nonetheless very successful 2021 season which saw Markus Schlosser and Marcel Fries crowned champions, Roger Body and his RKB-F1 management team in conjunction with the Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme are delighted to announce a full eight-round Championship for 2022. With most European countries now well advanced in their Covid-19 vaccination programmes, there is a real sense of optimism that the global pandemic which has so severely affected sport and travel, will not disrupt arrangements and plans for a full racing season.
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Donington Park has been added to the 2022 schedule making nine rounds in total, with eight of those alongside the Bennetts British Superbike Championship. The Leicestershire circuit is popular with the sidecar teams and always provides great racing.
(Don’t forget the dinner dance January 29th, form here for download. )
The inclusion of Donington Park creates an attractive and exciting season for the established star names, as well as several new crews who have signalled their intention to step up and compete in the full series.
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UPDATE: Donington Park added, see here
The 2022 British Sidecar Championship roars into action with two races at Oulton Park in the traditional opener over the weekend of April 30-May 2nd. This will set the scene for an eight-round series, with the now firmly established Cadwell Park Revival meeting the only exception outside of the Bennetts British Superbike calendar.
Roger Body and his RKB-F1 team have been frantically busy since close of play at Brands Hatch juggling dates for both the British and FIM World Championships, with the sole objective of running meaningful, high-profile rounds and the minimum of clashes. A top priority has been to offer all teams the opportunity to compete in both championships with a real chance of succeeding in both.
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The Circuito do Estoril, located about nine kilometres outside the Portuguese Capital Lisbon is home to the final round of the 2021 Championship.
A moderate climate at this late stage of the year, and double points on offer, make it an attractive proposition for a host of crews to make the trip. At the time of going to press, no fewer than eight nations will be represented from eighteen teams.
The late cancellation of the UK Brands Hatch round means that there is an even greater sense of urgency for those teams at the top of the standings.
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The late cancellation of the FIM World Championship entry at Brands Hatch freed up some top names to race alongside the Molson regulars as wild cards. Reigning British Champion Steve Kershaw with Ryan Charlwood made an appearance on that basis.
Other top teams had registered for both series, so were eligible to score points. Among those crews were Todd Ellis/Emmanuelle Clement, currently lying second in the world rankings. With double points on offer in this final round, they had a good opportunity to make the Birchall Brother’s lead look less dominant, although they too would be going for glory. Also on the race card were Kevin Cable and Kyle Masters, having enjoyed their foreign trips, now back to score British points. Also falling into this category were Ellis’s Santander Salt teammates Rob Biggs and Jeroen Schmitz.
It is with huge regret that RKB-F1 announces the cancellation of the planned round at Brands Hatch over the weekend of 15-17 October.
Many of you will recall that last season we ran a Santander Salt/Bonovo two round series under the guise of the International Sidecar Superprix in which we had a mixed grid of World and National Championship teams. This was a one-off series which provided a pragmatic solution to a catastrophically disrupted season and delivered a spectacle of 26 teams to an International TV audience
A distinctly winter feel greeted the crews at Donington with heavy rain and wind on Friday. Saturday was another tricky day with the organisers moving the schedule to fit the weather which was predicted to deteriorate as the day unfolded.
Free practice saw a good performance by John Holden, with the Birchall brothers distinctly faster in the dry. They expressed concern that Avon had not brought enough of the new wet radial rear tyre with them. So, they would be obliged to use the older cross-ply version which did not perform as well.
All photos courtesy of Jenny Triker Wells – JTW Photography
Fresh from double victory in the German national championship in which they defeated main rivals Tim Reeves and Markus Schlosser, Todd Ellis and Emmanuelle Clement had every reason to feel buoyant ahead of this home series round. In free practice, it became clear this would be a renewal of the battle between the Santander Salt pairing, and the Haith Honda of Ben and Tom Birchall. They had edged free practice by seven one-hundredths of a second.
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TIMETABLE, LIVE TIMING FOR THE WEEKEND AND ENTRY LIST ON THIS LINK
(GOES TO STEVEENGLISH.COM/BSB)
Well into the second half of the season, Ben and Tom Birchall have taken the lion’s share of victories, having been defeated just twice. The only crew running them close on a regular basis is the Lewis Blackstock/Paddy Rosney duo on the DHR/Express Tyre Service Yamaha. Last time out at Cadwell Park, inclement weather conditions played a part, with Blackstock/Rosney just one second behind at the flag. They sit second in the table by a comfortable margin.
It was in similar weather conditions one month ago, also at Cadwell, that World Championship runners Todd Ellis and Emmanuelle Clement took the Santander Salt Yamaha to twin victories ahead of the Birchalls and will be looking to do the same at Snetterton.
The celebrated Cadwell Sidecar Revival attracted a full entry of all manner of sidecars, with the main focus being on the three championship races.
Todd Ellis (Santander Salt Yamaha) had his French lady passenger alongside for his second British Championship appearance in as many weeks. Ben and Tom Birchall (Haith Honda) were more than keen to fight for their unbroken record of victories.
Absent from Cadwell Park were Sam and Adam Christie because of Adam’s Thruxton injuries. At this moment in time, the Christie bike will continue to be missing, with the ankle injury to Adam more serious than initially thought. Asked if he might be tempted to use a replacement passenger to protect their points, Sam said the family feeling was, that racing was on hold pending Adam’s recovery. Let’s all hope it is sooner rather than later.
Cooler and mixed weather provided interesting racing conditions on what is widely acknowledged as one of the toughest tracks in the UK. With no FIM World round clash for the next two domestic championship weekends, there was a strong entry for both this, and the upcoming Cadwell Park Sidecar Revival. Fresh from success in Assen, Todd Ellis, reunited with Charlie Richardson for home rounds on the Santander Salt Yamaha, was determined to pick up where he left off when last on UK business.
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