Mid-way through 2025 Dale McElveen and Leigh Finlay had a vision of running in the 2026 Quattro Plant British Supersport class. This weekend at Oulton Park, that vision became a reality and they made their debut appearance with their rider Luke Stapleford who secured a double race win! What a start! Luke riding the beautiful Ducati V2 made a fantastic impression. He was comfortably sat at the top of the time sheets during the practice sessions. Qualifying ended up being slightly damp and after a small crash on Friday Luke did not want to push too hard, he ended up 9th.
It was always going to be a challenge from 9th for the Sprint race on Sunday but Luke got his head down as soon as the green light went out. He made up several positions on the opening lap and was soon chasing down the leaders. He pushed hard and got to the front where he stayed and took the teams first win of the season. He was hounded by former multi Supersport Champion Jack Kennedy during the closing laps of the race, taking the win by just 0.1!
For race two Luke started on pole position and from the off he was a man on a mission. Despite being locked in a five-bike battle for half the race he soon wanted to make a break, setting the fastest lap and winning the race by 1.9 seconds. It was the perfect start for the new Scars Racing Ducati team.
Luke Stapleford – “Firstly I must say a huge thank you to the Scars Racing Ducati team, they have put so much work in over winter to make all this happen. The least I could do is repay them like this! None of expected to be this quick so soon, we thought it might take a couple of rounds to bed in. I’ve never been so excited to want to get out and ride a bike. I’m so comfortable on the Ducati and have been from the offset. A massive thanks to Dale and Leigh for making this happen and all the team who have worked so hard this weekend to make things perfect. I actually can’t wait to get to Donington Park and go again. Thanks to everyone involved and let’s hope we can continue this form the rest of the season.”
Leigh Finlay – Team Co-Owner – “What an absolutely brilliant start to the season. I know Luke had a small tip off in practice but at least it was practice and he really did shine in both races. He put in the effort and hard work all winter and delivered the goods on our first race weekend.”
Dale McElveen, Team Co-Owner – “What a fantastic debut for the Scars Racing Ducati team at Oulton Park. We really couldn’t have asked for more from Luke but also all the team and the sponsors who are supporting us in this project. We’ve a busy few weeks now with the North-West 200 with Michael, Donington and then off to the TT. Congratulations to all the team and we can’t wait for the rest of the season.”
