Superside Brands Preview from Wally

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FIM Sidecar World Championship.
Round Seven, Brands Hatch GP.

Brands GP Welcomes Sidecar Crews.
Round seven of the FIM Sidecar World Championship will be at the popular 3.916 mile Brands Hatch GP circuit. The track is always popular with the sidecar teams, a real rider’s track, with the fast undulating track weaving in and out of the surrounding woodland. With corners like “Paddock Hill” some riders say it is like driving off the edge of the world, the ultra fast “Hawthorns” bend, then coming onto the start finish straight, the off camber corner of “Clearways”.
Tim Reeves and Gregory Cluze will be coming here after winning the last four races. With 125 points the Anglo French pairing have a slim five point lead in the championship over Pekka Paivarinta and Kirsi Kainulainen. Reeves would call “Brands Hatch” his home track; however he will need to be on top form if he and Cluze want to keep their championship lead. The Finnish pairing of Paivarinta and Kainulainen have been working well together, and they are getting their machine setup just how they like it. The last round, at the Pannonia Ring in Hungary, Paivarinta and Kainulainen pushed Reeves and Cluze in the dry race, Reeves/Cluze were to take the win, but only by 0.142 over Paivarinta/Kainulainen, and the “Flying Finns” have had the fastest lap times in the last two races.
The Dutch pairing of Bennie Streuer and Geert Koerts are sitting third in the Championship with 90 points. The pair have been consistent all through the season, standing on the podium four times so far this year. Another podium at Brands Hatch would give them good points for their title chase, and would help them stay ahead of the German/Austrian pairing of Uwe Gurck and Manfred Wechselberger. Gurck and Wechselberger have had a slow start to the season, but things seem to be coming together for them now, a podium in Hungary helped them no end, boosting their points tally in the championship, they have 68 points, and in fourth place.
Jakob Rutz and Thomas Hofer from Switzerland are sitting in fifth place in the championship, they missed the first round at Donington Park, they will be hoping for a good result at Brands Hatch to hopefully boost their championship position. Rutz/Hofer are only four points ahead of Slovenian driver Milan Spendal. Spendal has had a mixed season so far; he missed the race at Donington Park due to passenger injuries. He then managed to draft in Frenchman Freddy Lelubez to passenger for him, unfortunately Lelubez had to passenger in his domestic French championship during the last round in Hungary. Fortunately Spendal had the assistance of his old passenger Peter Hill. Lelubez will be able to passenger Spendal for the rest of the season now; the pair will be hoping they can increase their points tally greatly in Brands Hatch.
The regular sidecar teams in the championship will need to be at their best though, as there will be some wild card British teams racing. “Young Guns” Ricky Stevens and Ryan Charlwood, they won their first GP way back in April at Donington Park, that win is good enough to place them tenth in the championship. Like Reeves, Brands Hatch would be classed as Stevens and Charlwood’s home track. They are leading their domestic British championship, and they are on top form too, they have won their last two races in this championship.
Another local team to watch out for, would be Ben Holland and Lee Watson, like Stevens and Charlwood they also were on the podium at Donington Park with a third place. These two teams could upset the regular world teams on the points table if they have good results at Brands Hatch GP.
Sunday the 19th there will be an 18 lap race starting at 17.20 local time.