'Non-stop' Haslam turns focus to Brands Hatch GP

Leon Haslam has combined injury recovery with intensive preparations for both the Suzuka 8 Hours and BSB's Brands Hatch GP round.

17 Jul 2017

Leon Haslam has combined injury recovery with intensive preparations for both the Suzuka 8 Hours and the Brands Hatch GP round of the MCE British Superbike championship as he looks to reignite his title charge this weekend.

After sitting out the Knockhill round in June after his nasty free practice crash, Haslam made a comeback two weeks later at Snetterton but struggled against grip issues to miss out on the podium in both races and with it the vital Podium Points.

The former World Superbike star was given little time to dwell on the results as he immediately flew to Japan for the official pre-event tests ahead of the Suzuka 8 Hours as he returns to the iconic endurance race with Team Green Kawasaki after finishing on the rostrum 12 months ago.

Having returned to the UK for the round six of BSB which slots in between the tests and the Suzuka 8 Hours race weekend, Haslam is back in action on Tuesday for a private test with JG Speedfit Kawasaki at Cadwell Park before heading to Brands Hatch this weekend.

After regaining full fitness, Haslam is purely focused on returning to the BSB rostrum to add to his Podium Point tally with an eye on the Showdown.

"I've been out in Japan since Snetterton, which was obviously a tough weekend, so it's been a bit non-stop but thankfully my injury from Knockhill is a little bit better," Haslam said. "We're looking forward to getting back to winning ways.

"Brands is a Showdown race and I've enjoyed some success at the circuit in the past with the Kawasaki so we're feeling confident we can gain some all-important podium credits.

"We've got a test this week so it's go, go, go, but it's all good preparation for weekend. This is the part of the season where we need to rack up points and it's important to do well to get a good set-up for the last few rounds."

12 months ago Haslam was forced to settle for two second place finishes behind Shane Byrne at the Brands Hatch GP round, with the circuit also hosting the season finale in the Showdown, but did secure a race win around the Indy configuration in April 2016.