So the Coventry rider, in only his second season of Superbike competition, scored his maiden win in his debut appearance for the HM Plant official Honda team. Talk about impressing the boss on your first day in the office. This was the birth of a new star, a guy who's got the right kind of cocky bravura and the ability to follow through with results.
Like many top riders, Crutchlow seems able to see his future stretching out in front of him. After he had lost the first race at
Thruxton to Shane Byrne, he said: "I'll have him in the second one."
Crutchlow and his technicians conjured more edge grip into the rear tyre of the Fireblade, and it worked. He admitted that at times he felt nervous as the closing laps ticked away and the race became his to lose.
"You never win your first BSB race when you've only just started leading races, and the first time I'd ever led a race was in the first one," he admitted.
But he held his nerve and got the victory. Now he'll see himself as a serious challenger to Shane Byrne for the title. He's BSB's
Jorge Lorenzo, in effect.
Sunday PM: 'I'm your Jorge,' Crutchlow's podium says
Who will be BSB's Jorge Lorenzo, I asked in this column two hours ago. Cal Crutchlow has just provided the answer. His ride into second place in his debut appearance on the HM Plant factory Honda was intelligent, calculated and gutsy.
"I can't shake your hand!" he warned well-wishers after he climbed off the Fireblade.
Crutchlow is still carrying injuries to his crucial right hand, yet he's tough enough to handle his 200-horsepower bike at up to 185mph for 20 laps of this 2.3-mile circuit. Although he had to surrender his early lead to winner Shane Byrne, remember that Thruxton is very much a Ducati circuit: Gregorio Lavilla won both races here last year on the red V-twins.
I'll bet that Crutchlow scores his first BSB victory within another four races.
Sunday PM: Another racetrack grub rip-off
Am I just a stingy b**tard, or is £3 for a white bun with a rasher of bacon slapped into it a reasonable price to pay? I think it's a rip-off, and typical of the junk food at inflated prices offered to punters at British racetracks.
