Sykes hoping to continue Donington dominance

Having won the last six races at Donington Park, Tom Sykes heads into his home round of the 2016 World Superbike championship in a strong position.

The Kawasaki star has dominated the last three rounds at the Leicestershire circuit, despite strong competition from his team-mates in 2014 and 2015, and he’ll be looking to make eight wins out of eight as he returns home this weekend.

He comes to Donington on good form having taken the first race win last time out in Sepang and currently sits third in the championship chase.

“It is always a pleasure to race at a home round and it is a fantastic circuit,” said Sykes. “Obviously we have some good history there and the plan is to continue that. If I think of previous events we are in a good position to make it all possible.

“I have no idea why Donington has been such a special place for me in the past few years. People always suggest that I am familiar with it, it is a home race, or something else like that. There is no particular reason for me. I try with the same effort at every circuit but I am grateful for my success at Donington.

“The most recent venue of Sepang was a fast flowing circuit with new asphalt. It had a lot of grip and tyre life issues for everybody. We managed that the best in race one and that is really rewarding and comforting for me because it reassures me that we are at a good level. Once we get the bike somewhere in the ballpark we can be as strong as anybody.”