Leon Camier had his best race weekend of the season at Silverstone in the latest round of the eni FIM World Superbike Championship.

The Ashford rider was celebrating his birthday and looked on the pace from the word go at one of two races in the UK this season.

It couldn’t have gone much better for Leon as he finished in third place in the first race of the weekend after starting seventh on the grid.

In race two he couldn’t quite replicate that and he came home for a great fifth place finish for the Fixi Crescent Suzuki team.

Teammate Jules Cluzel also had a great weekend at Silverstone, in race one he brought his machine home in fifth place and then he bettered his teammates third place by coming home in second in race two.

Speaking about achieving his first podium of the season Camier, said: “The first race was good, because everything on the bike felt good and it performed well. When it dried out fully I felt like we didn’t quite have the pace of the others, but in the in-between conditions I made the most of it so I was able to be in there at the end.

“I made a pass on Eugene on the last-lap but he came past on the straight and I couldn’t do anything about that. I tried again, but couldn’t get past him as I felt I was on the limit. In the second race I got a better start and the bike was working really well – the guys have done a great job with it this weekend – and towards the end of the race I felt stronger than everyone else. I thought I had the speed to win the race so I was disappointed with the result.

“I got beaten up a couple of times in the turns and then Chaz blew up in-front of me and that cost a lot of time. Then Guintoli pushed me wide and it turned into one of those races. If you were in the wrong place at the wrong time it was a bit of carnage and that was what happened to me!

“I want to say a big ‘well done’ to Jules, he rode two really good races today and it was great to see him get that result in the second race, not just for him, but for the whole team and all our sponsors here today.”

Team Manager Paul Denning was delighted to see both his riders standing on the rostrum in races one and two and back where he knows they should be.

He said: “It’s been a great day for FIXI Crescent Suzuki here at Silverstone and just rewards for the incredible dedication and efforts that the team continually makes. There was a moment about four-laps from the end of the second race when Leon and Jules were first and second – and pulling away – when I thought the day would go from positive to dreamlike!

“I don’t think there is much I can say about the performances of both riders that can’t be seen from the incredible racing footage and the results they achieved. I genuinely believe that if the second race had stayed dry, that with five-laps to go, Leon was in a position to pull away and win. He had incredible pace, but being the first rider to arrive in the rain and a bit of bad luck with Davies’s BMW exploding in front of him knocked him backwards.

“I don’t think we can be unsatisfied with a third and a fifth for Leon and Jules backing that up with an amazing ride to second in the second race was more than we could have asked for.”

“I want to thank all of our partners, sponsors and guests for coming this weekend, it was incredibly busy and I hope that they all had a great time and went away happy with these two results. I also want to thank all the team and hospitality crew for a fantastic job in all departments.”