June 2003, we were invited to Silverstone as guests of British Superbike regulars Rizla Suzuki competing as a wildcard entry in the British round of the World Superbike Championship.

Qualifying Day One

Rizla Suzuki rider John Reynolds proved he has what it takes to challenge the World Superbike regulars when he posted the third fastest time in first qualifying for the sixth round of the Championship at Silverstone. Alstare Suzuki's Gregorio Lavilla was fastest on his GSX-R1000.

JR, a British Superbike Championship contender and wild card entry at his home round of the blue-riband World Superbike Championship, spent most of the day learning the circuit, he has never raced at the long Silverstone track before but at the end of qualification, he still managed a fantastic lap time in the glorious sunny conditions.

Fellow Rizla Suzuki wild-card rider Yukio Kagayama is also new to the track and spent much of the day's two one-hour sessions learning the curves and corners. He concentrated on race tyre endurance testing and was happy he that he would be able to improve on his provisional 11th place the following day.

The Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000 race bikes were right on the pace despite a host of modifications required to allow them to compete in WSB. The main alteration is the use of 32.5mm air restrictors to curb horsepower. The Rizla Suzuki team technicians have worked tirelessly on the engine set-up using the restrictors and have managed to nearly match the horsepower of the unrestricted BSB specification engine.

John Reynolds: "The bike is working quite well for us and we have tested some tyres. Overall I am happy, but there is more speed to come from us yet. We will be working on our chassis setting to try and help the bike change direction during the fast corners and I need to use shorter footrests as my feet are digging in on certain corners. The other area we will be looking at is gearing. Coming out of the final corner, the bike is sideways. Along the fast straight, it could probably manage a bit more top speed as well. If we get that dialled in then we have a chance of going a good bit quicker."

Yukio Kagayama: "I am still learning this circuit and I am taking my time, I want to get it right. Today I used very few tyres and stayed out on track for a long time. At the end of the final session I was starting to feel very comfortable with the track and my bike feels very good and the engine is strong. Tomorrow I will be able to go faster and hopefully get closer to John-san's lap times. Racing at World level is important for us as a team and I plan to do well.

Qualifying Day Two - Superpole

Second qualifying was bathed in warm sunshine and resulted in Kagayama securing 5th and Reynolds 6th for the afternoon's superpole shootout.

In superpole Yukio Kagayama stunned the World Superbike regulars with his sheer speed and determination as he hustled his Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000 into second place on the grid for the sixth round of the Championship at Silverstone.

Yuki, riding as a wild card entry, was just 0.044 seconds behind eventual pole man and World Championship leader, Ducati's Neil Hodgson. The British Superbike regular might have been even closer if it wasn't for a time consuming slide as he exited the final corner during his one timed Superpole lap.

Rizla Suzuki rider John Reynolds finished eighth on the grid and will start from the second row in the races. The Nottingham wild card rider topped the time sheets for much of the final practice session on race rubber and is confident of a good set-up for the races.

Yukio Kagayama: "I am very happy to be in second place on the grid. The weekend has not been very easy but my team staff have worked very hard and they have given me a lot of support. They are the perfect team and have helped me enormously with my bike and race set up. I have promised my team that I will try very hard and do my best to make a good result. I wish to repay them for their hard work and effort."

John Reynolds: "I ran wide in a few corners and it was a disappointing Superpole lap. I didn't go much faster on my qualifying tyre than I was going on harder race rubber and to be honest, the lap just didn't gel. On a positive note, we have an excellent bike set-up and we are as quick as anybody on race rubber. The second row isn't a bad place to start and both races will be long and hard affairs that I am ready for. Congratulations to Yuki on producing a fantastic lap."

Race Day

Rizla Suzuki's Yukio Kagayama put on a dazzling display of motorcycle racing to lead both of the races at the sixth round of the World Superbike Championship at Silverstone.

Yuki, a wild card entry on a Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000, led the first three laps of the first race and then enjoyed a short stint at the head of the pack in the second race as he fought tooth and nail with some of the best riders in the world for the victories.

In race one Yuki was in contention for the win until the dying laps when he overshot Maggots corner and ran off track. He rejoined in eighth and recovered to finish fifth. In the second race he was in a comfortable third place for the first half of the race. He then made some small mistakes as his tyres started to slide and finished fifth, only four seconds away from the winner. In both races he was the leading British Superbike Wild Card finisher.

Rizla Suzuki’s John Reynolds was running at the front in both races. In race one he was held up when Yuki ran off track and finished line astern in sixth place. In race two on lap two he was behind Yuki in third place when he was rammed by Ducati’s Ruben Xaus and relegated to 20th place. He rejoined the race and fought bravely back to 10th.

A record crowd of 83,000 fans made the trip in blazing sunshine to Silvertsone to watch the racing this weekend. Ducati’s Neil Hodgson won both of today’s races while Alstare Suzuki’s Gregorio Lavilla took the lap record on his GSX-R1000 with a 1:53.629s circulation.

Yukio Kagayama:
“ This weekend have been very good fun for me and I have enjoyed myself. I am a little disappointed not to win or make the podium as we came so close, but I led both races and that felt brilliant. I want to lead over the finish line next time.

“My team staff have been fantastic this weekend and I can’t thank them enough. They set the bike up well for me and let me relax and get on with riding, they are a great crew.

“I would like to ride in WSB again with my Rizla Suzuki team. I will ask my boss in Japan if this is possible. Riding in British Superbikes has helped me to race here. The last and only previous time I rode in WSB was in Japan at Sugo in 2000 and I wasn’t very competitive. Here I was right on the winning pace and that proves the high level of BSB.”

John Reynolds:
“ There are some weekends, no matter how hard you try, that just don’t run your way and this was one of them. In race one I slowed when Yuki went off track and nearly crashed into me and in race two I was comfortable in third when Xaus took my handlebar away from me when his bike hit mine. After recovering from that, the chance at a podium was gone.

“Well done to Yuki this weekend and well done to the whole team for making our Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000’s so competitive. This bike is a weapon and I hope to have it winning in BSB soon.”