Marco Morelli (Fibre Tec Honda) showcased his prowess during Friday’s practice sessions at Thruxton Circuit, as the R&G British Talent Cup kicked off its seventh round of the 2024 season. The young riders faced challenging conditions with high temperatures and Thruxton’s notoriously abrasive surface, providing an excellent test of skill and machine management.

Practice Sessions Breakdown

Free Practice 1

The morning session saw Marco Morelli set the early pace with a lap time of 1:23.343. Amanuel Brinton (Kovara Projects / RS Racing) and Julian Correa (Microlise Cresswell Racing) rounded out the top three, with less than two-tenths of a second separating them.

Free Practice 2

As track conditions improved in the afternoon, lap times tumbled. Morelli further cemented his dominance by significantly lowering his time to 1:22.158. Amanuel Brinton maintained his second position, while Ryan Frost (Fibre Tec Honda) made a leap to third, showcasing the progress made in bike setup and the evolving track conditions.

Combined Practice Results

The combined classification from both sessions reinforced Marco Morelli’s supremacy, followed closely by Amanuel Brinton and Ryan Frost. Filip Surowiak (Team City Lifting / RS Racing) and Lucas Brown (SENCAT Talent Team / Mortimer Racing) completed the top five, highlighting the competitive nature of the young talent in the series.

Adapting to Thruxton’s Challenges

Thruxton’s unique characteristics – its abrasive surface and long, high-speed sections – presented a significant challenge for the young riders. The sessions saw them working on finding the right balance between outright speed and preserving their tyres, crucial skills for their development as racers.

Notable Performances

• Harrison Mackay (Wilson Racing / HMR) showed strong improvement, jumping from 7th in FP1 to 6th in the combined standings.
• Clayton Edmunds (Team City Lifting / RS Racing) made significant progress, moving up from 9th in FP1 to 8th overall.
• Julian Correa, despite leading the charge in FP1, ended up 7th in the combined standings, highlighting the competitive nature of the field.
• Harley McCabe (McCabe Racing by Motorbike Buyers) broke into the top 10, showing promising pace on the challenging circuit.

International Flavour

The British Talent Cup continues to attract international talent, with riders from Argentina (Morelli), USA (Correa, Banish, Raymond Jr.), and Bermuda (Divine) mixing it up with the British contingent, adding an extra layer of competition and diversity to the series.

Looking Ahead

With temperatures expected to remain high throughout the weekend, Saturday’s qualifying session and the subsequent races will test the young riders’ ability to manage their machines and tyres over longer distances. The stage is set for an exciting battle for pole position, with Marco Morelli looking to convert his Friday dominance into a strong grid position for the weekend’s races.

As teams and riders analyse data and fine-tune their setups overnight, the Thruxton crowd can anticipate more thrilling British Talent Cup action as these future stars of motorcycle racing tackle the challenges of this fast and flowing Hampshire circuit under the scorching sun.