IMPRESSIVE PERFORMANCE BY VAN DER MARK AT DONINGTON PARK
Michael van der Mark continued to amaze today, twice finishing inside the top ten despite undergoing surgery on a fractured right radius less than two weeks ago. The Pata Yamaha rider was eighth in the Sprint Race this morning and backed that up with another eighth place in this afternoon’s Race 2. In the Sprint Race Michael was working his way steadily through the field only for the race to be stopped with three laps remaining, with Van der Mark eighth, when oil was dropped at the Melbourne Hairpin. Michael got a good start in Race 2, but came under immediate pressure as he struggled for rear grip. At half race distance the Dutch rider had passed Ducati’s Chaz Davies for eighth position, which he held to the chequered flag.
Michael van der Mark – Pata Yamaha WorldSBK – P8 – Championship Position 3rd – 206 Points: “We made a change to the bike after the Sprint Race and I think we maybe went a little bit in the wrong direction, as I was struggling for rear grip from the start and couldn’t use the new tyre like everyone else. I actually got a good start but then dropped back quite quickly and there wasn’t much I could do about it. I had good pace, but I’d have liked to have been able to push harder. We have to be happy with the points we’ve scored this weekend, given the injury, but as a racer I know that if I had the grip then I’d have been able to fight with Alex and the other guys. The wrist was much better than I was expecting this weekend, so now I can look forward to Laguna with some confidence.”
Results
Superpole Race
Race 2