EXCLUSIVE: Jamie Hamilton - Q&A Interview

Crash.net
What made you decide to switch to a new team for next season after a year with Wilson Craig Racing?

Jamie Hamilton:
To be honest things didn't work out how I expected with Wilson this year. Don't get me wrong, there wasn't anything wrong with the bikes, but we didn't get off to the best start to the season and I just didn't feel like I was comfortable in the team. There were just different opinions about things but once we got past the Isle of Man TT I started to get some decent results.
I talked with Wilson about staying for a second season and I think he was quite surprised that I left to join B.E. Racing, but I just didn't see how things in the team would change for next year.

Crash.net
What drew your attention to John Burrows' team and how do you think you will perform as Dan Kneen's replacement next year?

Jamie Hamilton:
John runs a good set-up and we saw this year with Dan how good his bikes are. I got to know John better over at Macau and we had a bit of a craic; I like the way he runs his team and it's a bit more relaxed. I'll be able to simply turn up and concentrate on riding the bikes rather than worrying about this or that - it will all be done for me and that's something that I haven't had for a while.
There won't be any stress and all my bikes will be under one roof. This year I rode a Supertwin for different guys and it wasn't ideal, but John is building me a good Supertwin for next year and it will be a lot more beneficial having all the bikes in the same awning. The bikes are competitive and it's up to me now to get some serious training done and try and get into the kind of shape I was in when I was competing in the British championship.

Crash.net
Looking back at this season, you had some highs as well as lows. What is your take on how the year panned out?

Jamie Hamilton:
Like I said I didn't have the best start to the season because I was still fitting into my new surroundings and it took a while to get used to how Wilson did things. My confidence took a bit of a beating as well and really it wasn't until after the Isle of Man TT that I managed to get back into the same kind of form I was showing last year.
There were a number of reasons why it took me a while to get going but for me the key thing was a lack of testing at the beginning of the season. There wasn't much preparation really so that held me back a bit and things weren't all that great in the team because people weren't getting on with each other.
But once the TT was over things started to improve and I won four times at the Bush [road races] and managed to beat Dan twice in the Superbike races. That gave me a lift and I felt I was back in a position where I was confident of winning races again. I won the first Superbike race at Skerries and then I had that crash in the Grand Final when I was battling with Dan [on the last lap] and that set me back again. I'd hoped to be back for the Ulster Grand Prix but I had to sit it out, though when I came back at Killalane I felt good again and then obviously at Macau last month I had a bit of bad luck [crashed out on fluid dropped by Peter Hickman's BMW in practice].
I was beginning to think that if it wasn't for bad luck then I'd have no luck at all! But these things happen sometimes and you've got to take it on the chin and move on.

Crash.net
You've raced against Dan Kneen before in the British Superstock 600 Championship as well as the roads. Is there a healthy rivalry between you and will the fact that you have taken over his old ride make things even more interesting next season?

Jamie Hamilton:
A lot of people don't actually know that I raced against Dan in the past in the British championship. We've sort of progressed along with each other and now we're rivals on the roads. In the past I always felt like I had the upper hand against Dan, but this year he was beating me and fair play to him, but I didn't like it! Dan is riding a Suzuki Superbike again next year [for Millsport Racing] and I'm on the Suzuki that he rode for John [Burrows] this year, so it definitely makes things interesting. I think it's good for the fans too because the likes of Michael Dunlop and Ryan [Farquhar] don't really do many of the national road races now so at least it'll keep the fans interested if myself and Dan are going at it every week.

Crash.net
Looking ahead to 2015, have you set yourself any goals for the national and international road races?

Jamie Hamilton:
I want to start training properly again; I did a bit of training last year but I was nowhere near as fit as I was when I was racing in the British championship. I wouldn't have thought anything of going out at night for a 10 or 15-mile run but now it just doesn't happen, so I want to get back to those kind of fitness levels that I had in the past.
It's nice having my plans tied up before Christmas and there's no worries or concerns about next season. Everything is in place and I'm looking forward to next year.
I never really felt like I was able to lead a Superbike race but I proved this year that I can do it and now I know I'll be able to fight for the Superbike wins every weekend at the nationals next year. I've got the bikes to do it and a strong team behind me, so it's down to me to prove it. I'm not really one for making big predictions but obviously I want to do well at the international meetings and make more progress at the TT.

Crash.net
Thanks for your time Jamie.

Jamie Hamilton:
No problem, thanks.