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Stroud's Dan Cooper and the Cornwall-based Centurion Racing team enjoyed a strong TT race debut together as they took a fine 38th place in the opening Dainese Superbike race. Competing on a Superbike for the first time and in his first six-lap race, Dan got quicker and quicker as the race wore on also posting a new personal best lap of the Mountain Course at 118.502mph.

With perfect conditions on the Island, an opening lap of 116.580mph saw Dan move up to 49th from his start position of number 57 but encountering more traffic on his second lap, he slipped back to 43rd. A smooth pit stop saw him back out onto the Mountain Course and he increased his speed on lap four to 116.764mph to move up inside the top 40 for the first time.

Circulating with a number of riders, it was proving difficult to get a clear lap but on his sixth and final lap, the only flying lap of the race, Dan proved how much he was getting to grips with both the circuit and machine by moving up to 38th place. It was his best lap of the 37.73-mile circuit to date and a speed of 118.502mph was just reward for his and the team's efforts.


Dan said afterwards:

"That was a really tough race and six laps is certainly a lot harder than four, the blisters on my hands show that! When I left the line, I was thinking six laps was going to be a long old race so I kept it steady for the first couple of laps and was pleased to get quicker and quicker as the race wore on. I was glad to get out there and gain more experience although it was a bit frustrating as I kept catching and passing people only for them to get ahead of me after the pit stops meaning I had to do it all over again. I outbraked myself once at Sulby Bridge when I got a little bit carried away but other than that it was a trouble-free race. Finishing a six-lap race is a major achievement for anyone so to do this on just my second time here, and on a bike that I've hardly ever ridden, is really pleasing and I'm very happy to start the week with a solid finish."

Team owner, Paul Rees added:

"I'm chuffed to bits with the result and am really pleased for Dan and the team that we've completed our first six-lap race on a 1000cc machine. We've obviously had limited time with the bike but Dan just kept chipping away and it was a great race for him. The boys in the team did a great job at the pit stops and although Dan got held up a bit on a couple of the laps, he kept calm and worked his way through the traffic sensibly. It's a good, solid start to the week and a good finish for the team's first TT race so I'm over the moon."


Dan's next outings come on Monday where it's a busy day as he'll be contesting both the four-lap Supersport and Superstock races.

Centurion Racing will continue to show their support for Help for Heroes, their chosen charity, by displaying H4H logos on the bikes' new livery designed by Rage Designs and team attire. Dan's race helmet has been kindly donated by Arai and will be a one-off design by RichArt showing both the H4H and IOM TT logos. Team Principal Paul Rees, who spent 20 years in Her Majesty's Royal Marine Commandos, was given permission to have the bikes carry the H4H logos in order to encourage the public to be more aware of this charity that supports our Armed Forces, many of whom are making daily sacrifices in Afghanistan and Iraq.


Centurion Racing would specially like to thank Arai, FTR, GPR Racewear, Dunlop, Rage Designs, RichArt, R2 Logo Print & Embroidery, Akrapovic, Daytona, and Alan Smith of Smiths of Gloucester for personally supporting Dan, and all our friends and followers.