Airwaves Yamaha has today (Tuesday 1st September 2009) released further details regarding the disqualification of its rider Leon Camier from Race Two at Cadwell Park on Bank Holiday Monday.

On the 18th and final lap, race leader Leon was shown the black and orange flag as smoke was seen to come from his bike. Mistakenly believing he had until the end of the lap to come in to the pits, Leon continued on to take the chequered flag. The Championship leader was disqualified for the infringement and his teammate James Ellison, who was in 2nd, awarded the win.

After a thorough inspection, it has since been discovered that the oil cooler of Leon's bike had rubbed on the exhaust, causing smoke. An incident not experienced by the Airwaves Yamaha team before.

On the Race Two incident, Team Manager Colin Wright said, "I'd like to apologise to Leon for the error we made at Cadwell Park on Monday. We have found that the oil cooler had made contact with the exhaust, causing a small oil leak, and this was responsible for the smoke that was visible for all to see. Had this error not occurred, Leon would now be in a position where he would only need 4.5 points in the remaining rounds to secure the championship for Airwaves Yamaha. I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank Leon for immediately showing dignity and professionalism when he learned of his disqualification from the results.

"There has been comment made that a lack of competition has been behind Leon's success this year. But comparing his times from Race One to those of 2008 winner Leon Haslam, we can see that he still would have won by 3.5 seconds. He's had an outstanding season so far."

On the decision to exclude Leon from the race, Colin said, "The marshals and Race Director absolutely made the right call regarding the black and orange flag, as this was the only way that Leon would be made aware of a problem. As Leon did not leave the circuit immediately he was disqualified from the results. Unfortunately for us, the Race Director had to take this action exactly as the rules state. Had the oil leak been worse, Leon could have crashed and would almost certainly have caused others to fall on the oil."

Praising the performance of the team and the YZF-R1, Colin continued, "GSE Racing has enjoyed much success over the years and we are extremely proud of our exemplary race finish record. I honestly cannot remember the last time we experienced a non-finish due to mechanical problems. This year has so far been tremendous, James and Leon are the only two riders in the championship to have finished in every race, and we will be working hard to continue this through to the last round."

AIRWAVES YAMAHA DOUBLE UP - GSE Group Race report

Leon Camier and James Ellison scored a win apiece at Cadwell Park today. Championship leader Leon won the opening Race of the day with James finishing 3rd. James then climbed to the top of the podium in Race Two after Leon was disqualified on the final lap.

Pole-sitter Leon dropped a couple of places at the start of Race One. After a brief battle for 2nd, he took the lead on lap 4 as James went into the final podium spot. James then became involved in a three-way battled for 2nd, but was unable to find a way past the Honda of Stuart Easton by the chequered flag. Leon remained unchallenged to take his 15th win of the season by over 7 seconds.

Leon once again fell back into 3rd at the start of Race Two, but soon hit the front. James slotted in behind his teammate. The Airwaves Yamaha team looked set for their 7th one-two of the season when Leon was disqualified from the race for contravening the Black and Orange flag rule. James was therefore awarded with his 3rd win of the season.

After Race Two, James said, "I was a little bit disappointed with the end result of Race One. It was just so difficult to pass Stuart Easton. I knew that in Race Two I would have to pass him straight away, else I'd get held back again. I put everything into the move to pass him, and prayed that the bike would turn in, which thankfully it did. I then tried to chase down Leon. I wanted to see where he was quicker than me, and see what I could learn. I feel sorry for Leon being disqualified from the race. He has ridden superbly all season, and in particular this weekend. But I'm pleased that I managed to close the gap to him in the Championship and that the win stayed within the Airwaves Yamaha team."

On the day's events Leon said, "It felt really good to stand on the top step in Race One, especially after having so much bad luck here in the past. But of course I'm really disappointed about being disqualified from Race Two. I felt more comfortable on the bike, my lap times were better, and everything seemed to be going exactly to plan. Unfortunately I misinterpreted the rules; it's just one of those things. I'm really pleased for James and for Airwaves Yamaha. At least it was another double win for the team. I can't wait to get to Croft now."


Race One Results:

1. Leon Camier - Airwaves Yamaha

2. Stuart Easton - Hydrex Honda

3. James Ellison - Airwaves Yamaha

Race Two Results:

1. James Ellison - Airwaves Yamaha

2. Stuart Easton - Hydrex Honda

3. Simon Andrews - Confused.com Kawasaki


Championship Standings:

1. Leon Camier - Airwaves Yamaha 399.5pts

2. James Ellison - Airwaves Yamaha 302pts

3. Stuart Easton - Hydrex Honda 258pts



WOrds - Shelley McGrath

Pix Eric O'Brien