Josh Day got his title defence off to the best possible start with 2 poles and 2 wins on board the Host-it.co.uk Racing Team Panigale V2 at the opening Ducati Performance TriOptions Cup round held at Donington Park this weekend.

DIFFICULT RACE FOR BRADLEY WITH POOR GRIP

In the Brno race, Aleix Espargaró took great advantage of his fourth spot on the grid, starting well and taking the Aprilia RS-GP into the leading group straight away. In an extremely complicated race, the Spanish rider managed the situation, limiting the damage caused by tyre wear and not taking any pointless risks. The goal was to finish the race, earning the first points of the season; mission accomplished with a tenth-place finish when the chequered flag came out, about 8 seconds behind the podium. This is a “ground zero” spot for Aleix and his team to build on for the rest of the season.

Bradley Smith, on the other hand, battled with a lack of grip - a circumstance similar to what had happened in Jerez, but aggravated by the characteristics of the Portuguese track. This was all in spite of a good start, where Bradley managed to stay with the group of riders battling in the points zone, but having to rethink his ambitions after a few laps.


ALEIX ESPARGARO'
"I'm pleased that I finished the race after what happened in Jerez, although I can’t be entirely happy. Unfortunately, we were not as incisive in the race as we were in qualifying. I didn’t have the pace to stay with the best. However, on one side, we stayed in the top 10 on a track where we struggle historically, and this can be the real ground zero for the start of our season. We need to work especially on acceleration and on speed in mid-turn, although on the latter aspect maybe the two crashes in Jerez had an impact, convincing me to take fewer risks. In any case, I want to see the glass as half full, so we are staying positive and focused. We know our limits and we need to give it our all to solve the problems."

BRADLEY SMITH
"The start and the early stages of the race were good and it was definitely nice to see Aleix so far out front. Unfortunately, my pace got worse after a few laps. Similar to what happened in Jerez, I started battling with rear grip early on. In any case, finishing the race lets us gather more important data to help our project grow. It seems like we’ll have some new features to test from the next race, and that is very important."

the popular British Superbike support class, will be in action for the first time this year, when Round 1 kicks off on Friday 7th August at Donington Park.

of almost two weeks this weekend, with the Czech Grand Prix. The historic Brno circuit has been on the calendar since 1987 (except 1992), and it will host the MotoGP World Championship again for the third round of 2020.

The British Motor Museum will play host to a new innovative production ‘Voices of the West End’ which will be performed live in the safe and beautiful grounds of the Museum on 25, 26 & 27 September. The outdoor production, which is a collaboration between Ginger Boy Productions and Birmingham Hippodrome, will showcase music from the West End’s greatest musicals.

Some of the theatre world’s most illustrious singers will perform award-winning hits including Earl Carpenter who played Javert and John Owen-Jones, who played Jan Valjean in Cameron Mackintosh’s 25th Anniversary Tour of Les Misérables. They will be joined by two of the best female Voices of the West End: Kerry Ellis and Katie Hall. Kerry Ellis is one of the top leading ladies of Broadway and West End musicals. She originated the role of Meat, in Queen’s We Will Rock You and was the first British Elphaba in the West End smash, Wicked. Katie Hall recently starred as Fantine in Cameron Mackintosh’s international tour of Les Misérables and has played Christine Daaé in The Phantom of the Opera's UK tour and London's West End. She also played the role of Cosette in Les Miserables' 25th Anniversary Concert at London’s O2 Arena.

The performances are 90 minutes long with no interval and will take place on Friday 25 September at 7pm, Saturday 26 September, when there are two performances at 2pm and 7pm and on Sunday 27 September at 6pm. Gates open 2 hours beforehand.

The box office for the concert is managed by Birmingham Hippodrome and tickets can only be booked via their website at www.birminghamhippodrome.com. Roped pitches are £114 - £169 for a 3 square metre pitch that can accommodate 4 people from no more than two households or support bubbles.  Car spaces are £189 where performances can be watched from inside the car or set up next to it. There is a maximum of 4 PEOPLE ONLY exclusively from two households or support bubbles per pitch.

The chefs at the British Motor Museum are making picnics and luxury hampers which can be pre-ordered along with a selection of wines to enjoy in style. These must be pre-ordered via the Museums website and orders close on 16 August. On the event day there will also be a small food and drink area serving gourmet burgers with vegetarian/vegan options, coffee/teas, ice creams etc and a bar selling alcoholic and soft drinks along with a Pinnock’s Artisan Gin Bar.

Jeff Coope, Managing Director at the British Motor Museum said “We are delighted to host Voices of the West End in a safe and socially distanced environment. We are always keen to support the arts especially in light of COVID-19 and we hope to attract an audience that might not have visited the Museum before to enjoy some superb musical theatre”.

For more information about the event please visit 

www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk/whats-on/voices-of-the-west-end

The Museum and event organisers will continue to monitor the Government advice and keep visitors informed of any changes.