Last year’s Silverstone sensation Lorenzo Baldassarri is hoping that the wide open spaces of the ex airfield will allow him to get back on track to retain his title while current points leader Scott Deroue intends to keep his double Estoril victory juggernaut rolling.

Though 15 year old Baldassarri won race 2 at Jerez in April his other 2012 races have been somewhat frustrating. A 14th and a 10th from Estoril dropped him from points leader leaving Spain to 5th after Portugal.

In contrast 16 year old Dutchman Deroue overcame taking just 6 points from Jerez thanks to a 10th in race one and being knocked off in race 2 to storm into the lead thanks to a 50 point perfect score in Estoril.

The fact that Baldassarri heads to Silverstone as lap record holder means little for both races were soaking wet last year and the Italian’s 2 minute 31.500 second mark from Race 1 is way off the dry pole time recorded by Alan Techer at 2 min. 23.775.

Baldassarri was the sensation of both races though, charging away from the pack on Saturday only to be caught as he failed to respond to the drying track and finished 4th.

He made no such error on the Sunday, shot off into the lead and though chased by Saturday’s winner, the then 15 year old Austrian, Lukas Trautmann, he was never headed and won by 11 seconds.

It was the race weekend that really set Baldassarri on course for the title while Trautmann could not quite match his pace in the second half of the season scoring only 4 points in the remaining races to finish the year 10th.

Trautmann will be hoping that his Silverstone form returns though everyone else will be keen on a significant improvement on the freezing wet conditions that blighted 2011.

Deroue only picked up a single point last year for 19th and 15th but he is not the same rider, 12 months have wrought a huge change, he is by far the most improved Rookie and has rocketed from back-marker to points leader.

The title chase extends far beyond Deroue and Baldassarri of course and 16 year old Germans Philipp Oettl and Florian Alt lie 2nd and 3rd in this year’s table and but for Alt’s technical DNF in Race 2 in Jerez after he had won Race 1 he might well have the points lead.

Originally posted here: