Donington guest rider Luke Stapleford has the potential to be a dark horse

When Luke Stapleford was competing full-time in the Supersport World Championship, his prospects for strong results were, admittedly, not ideal. This was because for most of that time he was riding the Triumph Daytona 675, which wasn’t the best bike at the time. Nevertheless, the now 34-year-old managed to achieve some impressive results, such as 4th and 5th places at Donington in 2017 and 2016 respectively.

As previously reported by SPEEDWEEK.com, Stapleford will be on the starting grid at his home race at Donington Park on a wildcard, this time riding a competitive V2 Ducati.

Stapleford is familiar with the V2 bike from the British series, in which he secured a win and a second place this year at the circuit in Leicestershire. One thing is clear: Stapleford doesn’t just want to make up the numbers on his World Championship comeback!

“I’m absolutely delighted to have the opportunity to compete in the Supersport World Championship again. As I last raced in this championship in 2018, I’d actually thought I might never get the chance again,” said a delighted Stapleford. “The fact that we’ve already raced at Donington this year should give us a slight advantage.”

Stapleford rides for the Ducati team Scars Racing in the national series, which is also handling the wildcard entry. However, the bike will be prepared by the Öttl-Team Feel Racing and will be identical to the German rider’s bike, both technically and visually.

“That’s why I can’t thank the team enough for making this possible,” emphasised the Englishman, who grew up just 20 km from the circuit. “I know how fiercely contested the Supersport World Championship has been in recent years and just how big a challenge it will be, but given how things have gone so far this season, I firmly believe we can put in a good performance. I’m really looking forward to getting out on the track and competing against the best.”