Kam shines in a wet weekend at Knockhill

After a scorching round at Snetterton, the Pirelli National Superstock Championship travelled north to Knockhill for Round Five. Known for its short, technical layout and unpredictable weather, the 1.27-mile Scottish circuit offered a completely different challenge for Kam Dixon and the rest of the grid.

Friday: Free Practice

FP1 barely got underway before a red flag halted proceedings due to oil being dropped across the circuit by another competitor. After a lengthy delay and rescheduled to after the lunch break, the session resumed under wet conditions and a chilly 12°C, a stark contrast to the heat of Snetterton just two weeks earlier.

BSB Radio’s Duncan Vincent made note of Kam’s performance, highlighting that he was the only rider on a Yamaha in the Superstock field at Knockhill. Despite a second red flag caused by another rider's crash at Turn 6, Kam returned to the track and posted a best time of 54.746, finishing P10, just 0.062s behind P9.

FP2 saw continued wet conditions, but Kam improved with a best time of 54.419 after completing 27 laps. He remained P10, 1.445s off the quickest time, but showed consistency and adaptability.

After the day’s sessions, Kam said:

“Not a bad day overall - P10 in both FP1 and FP2. The bike felt good, though FP1 was a bit of a learning curve riding in the wet with no traction control for the first time. We got comfortable quickly and made good progress. Big thanks to the team for their work today.”

Saturday: Qualifying & Race One

The weather improved considerably on Saturday, with much drier and brighter conditions. Kam completed 24 laps in qualifying, setting his fastest time on Lap 22. A best lap of 49.441 secured him P8 on the grid for the afternoon’s race.

Initially declared a dry race, the heavens opened just as the warm-up lap got underway. A red flag was brought out, and the riders returned to the pit lane as showers passed and 30mph gusts of wind pushed the clouds away. After a short delay, the race got going over a reduced 18-lap distance.

Once the race finally got underway, Kam delivered a fantastic performance. He crossed the line in 7th place, collecting 12 valuable championship points. His best time during the race - a 49.426 - also secured him P10 on the grid for Sunday’s Race Two.

Reflecting on Saturday’s performance, Kam said:

“I’m really chuffed with that. It’s my best result in Superstock 1000 so far, and it didn’t come easily. I was in a race-long battle that came down to the final corner for P7. The bike felt great, but we just needed a little more to go with the group in front. Big thanks to the OMG Nitrous Competitions Racing team for putting a good bike beneath me today, especially after only having wet running yesterday.”

Sunday: Race Two

Kam started Sunday’s race from P10 on the grid. Conditions in the Scottish hills were once again treacherous, with the track completely soaked following persistent rain. Race Control opted to reduce the race distance from 24 to 20 laps due to the weather. Kam showed composure and control as he navigated the soaking wet circuit, bringing his Tinkler’s Yamaha R1 home in P11. It marked his second consecutive points-scoring finish of the weekend - another solid step forward in what was a highly challenging round.

Reflecting on the race, Kam said:

“Tough conditions out there today. I honestly expected to be a little further up the field and was hoping to fight for the top eight again, but I struggled early on to find a feeling I was happy with. It took me a while to get going, and I only set my fastest lap on the final lap, so that’s definitely something I need to work on. My dad always says in wet sessions that your quickest lap should be the last one - I just don’t think that should apply to dry races too! All eyes on Brands in a few weeks.”

Kam jumps from 22nd to 15th in the Championship after picking up 17 points this weekend at Knockhill. He’s just two points shy of 14th and only ten points away from breaking into the top ten.

Next up is a trip to Brands Hatch in Kent across the weekend of 25th - 27th July. Riders and fans will be hoping for better weather than Knockhill. As usual, racing will take place on the 2.433-mile GP layout.