600 Cup summary from Barry Nutley.

[steve-e]

New 600 Cup class concludes in style at Brands


The 2016 season saw the inaugural appearance of a new class within the championship. Designed to cater for those teams who wished to campaign a 600cc machine as defined in the new FIM regulations, or simply bring their short chassis 600 to top class action, the initiative has been heralded as a resounding success by teams and organisers alike.

After a tentative start when just a handful of regular teams committed to the championship, the word had spread to the point where in the Brands Finale, a strong showing of ten 600 outfits lined up for free practice on Friday. At the head of the pack were the newly crowned FIM World and British 600 Cup Champions Ben and Tom Birchall, who sadly were to end their season as spectators due to a mysterious electronic fault preventing the required number of qualifying laps.

Other high profile teams featuring throughout the season included the Founds brothers Pete and Alan, who with their respective passengers Jevan Walmsley, Tom Christie and for the final round Harry Payne, added spice and talent to the grid. Lewis Blackstock and Paddy Rosney’s consistent performances rewarded them with the runner-up spot in the series ahead of a solid set of points earned by Dean Nicholls who started the season with Ben Avison and completed it with Samantha Tilley in the chair. Gordon Shand and Phil Hyde found themselves catapulted into contention early in the season with three victories at Knockhill, but were unable to add to their points tally in the remaining rounds they contested.
A startling addition to the ranks at Brands was TT superstar Michael Dunlop with Dan Sayle sharing the Birchall Brother’s TT wining Honda LCR. After a slow start in race one, they stunned the paddock with fifth place in race two, and second place in the 600 class. Adverse track conditions and slower top speeds allowed the 600 brigade to compete almost on level terms with their 1000cc counterparts. This was more than borne out by Pete Founds and Jevan Walmsley bringing it home in third ahead of double champions Ricky Stevens and Ryan Charlwood.

For 2017, the RKB promoted series will offer the same format, with a 600cc Cup Class running alongside the 1000cc Championship. If the response this year is anything to go by, there will be a very strong challenge for the title.


600 Cup Final Points – Birchall/Birchall 138, Blackstock/Rosney 83, Nicholls/Avison/Tilley 73, Alan Founds/Christie/Payne 67, Pete Founds/Walmsley 39, Shand/Hyde 30, Reeves/Christie 20, Dunlop/Sayle 18, Ransden/Ramsden 18


www.rkbf1-sidecars.com Media matters barry.nutley@btinternet.com

SE here.... I'll check those points before posting to the front.