Microlise Cresswell Racing has today announced a strong line-up of riders and a new Mahindra bike for the 2018 HEL Motostar British Superbike Championship, which runs alongside the prestigious British Superbike series.
The team has secured extra support from Mahindra including an ex Lorenzo Dalla Porta Moto3 Mahindra and the team has opted to run on Bridgestone tyres following successful pre-season testing in Spain.
Once again the team will be spearheaded by 19 year old lead rider Asher Durham running number 64. Last season Asher finished 6th in the overall standings with a number a podium placement to finish. Microlise Cresswell Racing has also signed contracts with three additional riders for the coming season.
“I can’t wait to get back out on the circuit and unleash the power of my Mahindra. There was a steep learning curve in the early part of the 2017 season – but now with plenty of experience, both riding and engineering, I am optimistic about our chances for success,” said Durham.
Chris Taylor, 18, is coming back to the UK after racing in the Supersport 300cc World Championship in 2017 and will be running number 97.
American rider, Brandon Paasch, 17, who raced for the team in 2017 at the Assen round, will also take part in the Motostar GP class. Brandon comes to the team after a successful year racing in the KTM RC90 Cup having also achieved great success in the American Supersport 600 class for Suzuki. “I want to be the first American rider to win the British Championship,” says Paasch.
Adi Behal, 14, will continue for the team in the standard class. In the latter part of last season Behal made several appearances, making great progress for Microlise Cresswell Racing and securing points finishes in three rounds. “I’m really looking forward to racing with Microlise Cresswell Racing in 2018 and continuing to gain experience and skills with a team I trust,” says Behal.
Microlise Cresswell Racing will be competing at 9 rounds between April and October up and down the UK and in Europe.
“With two new rider contracts in place and the addition of the 2017 specification Moto3 bikes we are definitely a force to be reckoned with for the championship in 2018,” said John Cresswell, Team Principal. “We now have four strong riders dedicated to the team and scoring points, all with a pedigree of winning. I am very excited about the imminent season and believe the team is in a great position to solidify last year’s progress and continue the form we hit at the end of the season. The relationship we have with Mahindra supporting the team gives me great confidence – it will be now up to the riders to perform.”
The average BSB meeting receives between 25,000 & 35,000 visitors and TV viewing figures are set to reach millions of homes through Sky and Virgin Media platforms in the UK alone.
“It’s a pleasure to once again be backing Cresswell Racing, enabling the team to focus on what it does best: racing,” said Bob Harbey, Microlise Cresswell Racing Team Sponsor. ”The team showed spirit last season, securing a podium finish, particularly towards the end of the season. I am sure now with a strengthened line-up of talented riders and greater experience with our powerful Mahindra hardware we will mount a significant title challenge.”
Racing enthusiasts can watch the team in the first race of the season at Brands Hatch, where all four riders are scheduled to compete at Brands Hatch between 13th and 15th April.
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About Microlise
A privately owned business based in Nottingham in the UK, Microlise invests significantly in research and development annually to ensure its solutions continue to be underpinned by market-leading technology. Microlise helps its customers to save more than £210m each year in fuel costs and reduce CO2 emissions by hundreds of thousands of metric tonnes.
Microlise technology helps its customers reduce costs and the environmental impact of their fleet operations. This is achieved by maximising vehicle utilisation, increasing operational efficiency and improving economy and safety; whilst helping to deliver the very best customer experience by providing real-time visibility of the fleet against schedule.
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