In the battle for the championship it was a two horse race as no other rider could overhaul the two front runners. Plater went into the race with an 11 point advantage over his rival and proved a point in qualifying when he set the fastest lap in the dying seconds of the session with a flying lap of 1m 38.706 – 98.18mph – well inside the existing lap record.

“The team has done a mega job for me this weekend as we have been working on a different set up from the last time we were here in May so we have been hard at it, both in the garage and riding the bike getting it all dialled in,” explained Plater. “They must have done a good job as I have gone faster than ever before here on a 600cc bike. To be honest I don’t really care about pole position because it’s the race that matters so as long as I was to be on the front row or at worse the second row that’s fine. I just hope the weather is kind to us, either really wet or dry so we don’t have to worry about tyre choice.”

Starting from pole position Plater settled into second place behind fellow Lincolnshire rider Ben Wilson. The pair were swiftly followed by McConnell and James Westmoreland and all four steadily pulled away from the pursuing pack.

On lap three McConnell took the lead with Plater in his tyre tracks but Westmoreland was also anxious to claim a victory and followed through. McConnell pulled clear but as the race worn on Plater began to claw back the deficit taking over a second out of him on lap nine before snatching the lead one lap later.

Westmoreland stayed in close formation and as McConnell dropped back it was left to Plater and Westmoreland to battle it out for the win. With two laps to go the pair were head to head as they exited Druids but Plater got the racing line and held station for the remainder of the race to claim the victory and the championship.


“I really wanted to win the race - more than anything - as well as to win the championship,” said the newly crowned British champion. “It’s ok to finish in the points or on the podium but it’s not really my way. There is nothing better than to stand on the top step and obviously Billy had three wins, I had three and Westy had two so if Westy won it would have given us three wins apiece. As it is now I have had more podiums than anyone else, more wins and now the championship so that’s nice.

“Its mega to put the championship to bed here at Oulton Park and it’s a big relief as much as anything else as for the last four or five rounds its been a closely fought affair. It’s a big sign of relief and its mega for HM Plant Honda and mega for me, all my family and the fans and all the people who have been ringing and texting me this last few weeks. To say I am pleased is an understatement!!”

This fine result concludes Steve Plater’s racing season for the 2009 season which has also seen him take victory at the North West 200 and the Isle of Man TT where he secured the historic victory for HM Plant Honda in the Senior TT.



Pics show Steve Plater celebrating on circuit and on the podium showing off his British Supersport championship winning trophy.

Images by Turn One Photography.

Bloody mega racer and deserved British Supersport Champion

Well done Steve !