Battling Back at Balaton Park

It was a challenging start to the weekend at the Balaton Park Circuit in Hungary, with neither PTR Triumph rider able to fully capitalise during practice or qualifying. Oli Bayliss lined up P13 on the grid, with Tom Booth-Amos starting back in P22 for Saturday’s FIM Supersport World Championship Race One.

Both riders got off the line well when the lights went out for the 18-lap race. Bayliss held his position, while Booth-Amos produced a blistering start, launching his way up to 15th on the first lap.

Unfortunately, Bayliss’ race took an early setback with a crash at turn 5 on only lap two. Showing determination, he was able to rejoin and continue. The team made the strategic decision to pit him on lap ten for a fresh tyre, aiming to secure one of the nine fastest laps of the race to improve the Australian’s grid position for Race Two. The plan paid off, with Bayliss setting a time of 1’42.970, fast enough to place him seventh on the grid for tomorrow’s Race Two, despite finishing P26.

Oli Bayliss: “Obviously not the result we wanted today but our speed was good and we put ourself in a better position on the grid for race 2. A small mistake on my behalf passing another rider on the brakes and catching the slip of the guy in front, I had a small crash in the gravel. Sorry to my team and we’ll start race 2 from 7th.”

Booth-Amos, meanwhile, delivered an outstanding recovery ride. While some riders ahead ran into trouble, he made the most of every opportunity and was up into the top ten by lap seven. Fighting his way through the field with confidence and consistency, the Brit crossed the line in an impressive P7, also securing the eighth fastest lap of the race.

Tom Booth-Amos: “Started 22nd , finished 7th – Solid progress. With a better grid spot tomorrow, there’s a real chance to go even further.”

PTR Triumph Racing Factory Team Manager Simon Buckmaster: “After the disappointment of yesterday with Tom, we sat down as a team and I sat down with Tom personally and, obviously he wants to win every race but sometimes you can try too hard. He often sorts things out in the race which he did and it’s great that he did and obviously 22nd  to 7th is a really good job so congratulations to the whole team. On Oli’s side, unfortunately he had a slight coming together, ran into the gravel and slid over. He got back on and we realised there was no chance of him scoring points so we took the option to pit him for a tyre. He knew what he had to do and he did the lap time and also Tom did too so they start seventh and eighth on the grid tomorrow. So a fantastic job by the whole team, I am proud of us as a team unit recovering what looked like a very difficult weekend. It’s so tough in World Supersport but realistically tomorrow we have a chance to challenge for the podium.”

Measured Charge at Balaton Park

It was a day of mixed fortunes for the PTR Triumph Racing Factory Team at Balaton Park, with disappointment on one side of the garage and a composed, competitive performance on the other.

Oli Bayliss looked set to build on the promise of Race One after securing a third-row start thanks to his impressive lap time. However, morning warm-up brought a dramatic setback. A heavy high-side at the end of the session caused a red flag and left Bayliss requiring assessment at the circuit medical centre. Although initially appearing OK, further swelling to his elbow ruled him out of the FIM Supersport World Championship Race Two, with medical staff declaring the Australian unfit to start.

Oli Bayliss: “As you know not the best weekend here in Balaton. We had a small problem during this morning’s warm up and it resulted in a big crash and unfortunately I hit my elbow, I hit my ass. It doesn’t really feel too good, in a bit of pain but for sure we will be fine for Most come a few weeks. Time to reset, we had the pace this weekend but hopefully in Most we can bring it home.”

This promoted teammate Tom Booth-Amos from P8 to P7 on the grid, and he made the most of the opportunity with a strong and controlled start. Settling into sixth place early on, he maintained a consistent pace just behind the leading group, keeping the pressure on and staying within striking distance of the top five.

As the race unfolded, the British rider continued to deliver a measured and mature ride, managing the gap ahead then, Jaume Masia charging through from P25, made a late move on lap 12 to take sixth, before also passing Jeremy Alcoba for fifth. Unfazed, Booth-Amos remained focused and capitalised in the closing stages, reclaiming position from Alcoba to secure sixth place at the flag, just +3.8 seconds from victory.

Tom Booth-Amos: “I’m actually happy with the results this weekend considering the way I started on Friday qualifying 25th to come away with seventh and sixth today. Yeah I’m happy, it’s probably the worst circuit for me this year so happy enough to come away and get the most out of the bike and myself.  I’m looking forward to the next race now.”

PTR Triumph Racing Factory Team Manager Simon Buckmaster: “Unfortunately Oli wasn’t allowed to start Race Two because of damage to his elbow. He, and we, thought he was ok but the medical centre said no. That’s a shame because both riders were on the third row of the grid and looking for good results. Tom rode a good race today, it’s not his favourite track but still, we need to be as good as we can everywhere. Fair play to him and the team for getting the best results we can. We always want to be better than P6 but there are a lot of positives to take from that, we turned around what looked to be a very difficult weekend as a team together. So we go to Most and let’s see if we can get back on the podium and both riders up the front.”