KENDAL-born British Superbikes star James Ellison endured a frustrating opening race of the 2017 campaign as the season got under way at Donnington Park.

In the Superbike class Ellison and teammate Michael Laverty built momentum throughout the weekend. With mixed conditions in free practice and then qualifying cancelled, the team headed straight into the opening race of the season ready to build on their experience.

In the opening race Ellison took an early lead and set an impressive pace on his McAMS Yamaha, but mechanical issues slowed him down and he finished fifth with Laverty in eighth.

In race two, Laverty suffered a terminal technical problem forcing him to retire, while Ellison rounded off his debut race for the team with a sixth place finish.

Ellison said: “It was a bit of a frustrating weekend at Donington for many different reasons.

“First off we left the Spanish test second overall and under the WSBK lap record, so of course expectations were high coming into the first round. The weather made things slightly frustrating as we didn’t get to do so many laps but even then I still felt confident that we would run at the front.

“In race one I took the lead fairly early and if I’m honest it felt surprisingly comfortable, but after about eight or nine laps I started experiencing problems from our engine braking strategy and knew then we were in trouble. As the race went on, every lap became more and more difficult to tip into a corner without the rear wheel locking up.

“But we are positive as the bike has so much potential and I can’t wait for the following races to unleash it. I would say that the first half of both races exceeded my expectations due to the lack of track time and development we’ve had, but the latter half of the races were a disappointment and something as a team we must learn from ready for Brands Hatch.”

Both races at Donnington Park were won by Ellison’s former teammate Leon Haslam.

The JG Speedfit Kawasaki racer beat his own team-mate Luke Mossey to the top step of the podium by five seconds.

In the second race, Haslam managed to fend off Anvil Hire TAG Racing Yamaha’s Josh Brookes. who finished just two seconds back.

n Round two of the Superbike season is at Brands Hatch on April 14.