HAVING GOT THE BIKE APPARENTLY SORTED OUT THE TEAM TOOK PART IN THE CHAMPIONS OF BRANDS
(of which rider Neil Faulkner was the title holder)

Everything looked great, the bike handled brilliantly and Faulkner was almost a second a lap faster than any other rider. In race one starting from pole, Faulkner made his usual poor start and ended up tenth after the first lap, but then, started lapping faster and faster, breaking his own personal best time and the MRO lap record on the way. He had just overtaken Steve Mercer for first place when ten seconds late, the engine gave up, snapping a rod and grinding to a halt, cruelly outside the Team Emco hospitality suite. ...and that was the end of their title defence. Going to the BSB round the team were confident that with a new engine (thanks to Pete Beale) the last round would be a great round for the team. It so it went..... with the first practice being damp, Faulkner toured round confident that when it dried out he would have a jump on his fellow privateer competitors. In second practice, he underlined the point by being second fastest privateer and 22nd overall, spending most of the session in the top 15. In the third and final practice he slipped down the order slightly but only down to third privateer, but confident that their times had been done on soft tyres. Qualifying, went beyond the teams expectations, putting in a lap of 46.8 on his first qualifying tyre had Faulkner laying in 14th overall and 1st privateer. As he came in for the second tyre Faulkner was confident he could go quicker still. He joined the track, and waited for a gap and then got his head down. As fortune had it as he crossed the line, Lavilla on the Airwaves Ducati came past into Paddock Hill. Faulkner tucked in behind him and used him to gauge his lap. He managed to stay with a few bike lengths until Surtees where Faulkner actually gained a bit, but tucking down behind the screen on the exit of clearways trying to keep in Lavillas tow, Faulkner looked down for a split second and when he looked up was almost on the grass! This meant him shutting the throttle abruptly, which lost him speed and time for that lap and the next! All Faulkner could do now was sit in pitlane and watch as the time ticked away.
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