Castelrock’s Marty Nutt enjoyed an excellent weekend of racing at the Donington Park World Superbike meeting with two podiums from the two Ducati TriOptions 848 Challenge races held. Second and third gave the JHP/Ducati Coventry/Nutttravel.com rider another 36 points to consolidate his second place in the Championship after the opening two rounds.
 
After qualifying in fourth place, Marty was bumped up to third and the front row after Mike Edwards severely damaged his machine in a spill at Craner Curves and a solid start to the opening 10-lap race saw Marty slot into fifth place. He was soon up to second behind race leader Dennis Hobbs and although current Championship leader Jonathan Railton overhauled them, the battle for second went all the way to the chequered flag. Marty and Hobbs exchanged positions on each and every lap but a final lap manoeuvre saw the latter named take second and so Marty had to settle for third on this occasion.
 
Sunday’s race followed a similar pattern with Railton going on to take his second win of the weekend and Marty and Hobbs fiercely dispute second. Once again positions changed with frequent regularity and whilst Marty planned to make his move on the final lap, Hobbs found a false neutral at McLeans and drifted wide, subsequently letting Marty take over second. There was still nothing in it though but Marty held on for second place, his fourth podium from four starts this year.
 
Speaking afterwards, a delighted Marty said, “That’s one of the most enjoyable race weekends I’ve had in a long time, the grin factor’s been massive! I struggled a bit for grip in qualifying but my team did a great job all weekend and my crew chief Ricky Hackett worked wonders as the small changes he made to the bike allowed me to ride how I wanted. The battles with Dennis were great fun and there was literally nothing between us in either race.”
 
“He was stronger on the final third of the circuit, from the Foggy Esses to the start line, whilst I was stronger on the other sections so that meant we were constantly swapping places. He got the better of me on Saturday so I was determined to turn the tables on Sunday and that’s how it turned out. I was planning to make the move at the Esses but when he ran wide at McLeans I dived up the inside and just rode as hard as I could for the last half of the lap. That’s four podiums from four starts now so it’s been a good start to the season but we need to start getting the better of Railton. When he gets a clear track he can do some very quick lap times so we need to make sure he doesn’t get away in the first few laps and that’s the aim for the next round.”
 
The third round of the series takes place at Snetterton on 5-7 July.
 
Picture by Glynne Lewis.