A challenging opening weekend for Kam at Oulton Park

Kam Dixon returned to Oulton Park for the opening round of the 2025 Pirelli National Superstock Championship not quite knowing what the weekend would hold, following major repairs to his Yamaha R1 after a big incident during the final session of the official test at the Cheshire circuit just a week ago.

Saturday – Free Practice

Free Practice 1 saw Kam finish P16 after completing 10 laps, setting a best time of 1:38.234. The focus was less on outright pace and more on getting back on the bike and feeling things out after the extensive rebuild.

Conditions were near perfect throughout the day, with free practice taking place under beautiful blue skies and warm spring sunshine. A light breeze drifted through the trees, and by the afternoon the air temperature had risen to a comfortable 15°C, with track temperatures peaking at 29°C.

In FP2, Kam showed improved pace with a best lap of 1:37.788, although a technical issue brought his session to an early end after just seven laps — his Yamaha coming to a stop at Dentons as he began his eighth lap.

Kam reflected on the opening day, saying: “No expectations for this weekend as I'm still very sore from last week, but no excuses. I spent the first session getting some confidence back but still didn’t manage many laps for various reasons. In FP2 again I didn't complete too many laps. I had a brake fade issue which ultimately meant I had to stop after having no brakes into Cascades which was pretty scary! It wasn't an issue anyone could have foreseen and the boys have been at work and found the problem for tomorrow. Definitely wasn’t the session I was after. Tomorrow is a new day.”

Free Practice combined – P17 in the overall standings.

Sunday – Qualifying

Kam qualified P20 with a best time of 1:37.537. The session ended prematurely after another rider’s crash at the Brittens chicane caused a red flag with three minutes remaining.

“Qualifying was a big struggle,” Kam said afterwards. “I'm in a lot of pain with my leg and it’s stopping me from riding the bike how I know I can. It doesn’t help that Oulton is the most physical track on the calendar. Had a check-up and looks like it’s cartilage damage and maybe some stretch in the ligaments of my knee. Nothing broken or to worry about so that’s the main thing really. We’re going to see how we go in warm-up tomorrow and decide if it’s worth risking doing the race distance. Really sorry to the team and sponsors but we’ll be 100% in no time.”

Monday – Warm Up & Race

Kam completed just two laps in the Monday warm-up session, posting a time of 1:38.088 before the session was cut short due to another red flag.

Unfortunately, Kam did not start the race due to ongoing issues with his injured knee.

“After warm-up, it became clear that my knee just wasn’t strong enough to complete race distance safely,” Kam explained. “It’s a tough decision to make, but it was the right one. I’m really sorry to all the fans, sponsors and supporters who were looking forward to seeing me out there. We’ve got to take the long-term view, and I’ll be back fighting fit as soon as I can.”

Kam aims to return to action at Donington Park on 16th - 18th May 2025.