Source: Supplied.

Milwaukee BMW’s Josh Brookes is still searching for an optimum setting on his S 1000 RR following another frustrating World Superbike Championship round at Sepang in Malaysia last weekend.

Now at the halfway point of the season, 33-year-old Brookes finished just outside of the top 10 in both races, unable to find a suitable set-up to challenge for higher positions in his first ride at Sepang.

“It’s my first time racing here so I had to learn the circuit quickly on Friday and there’s a new surface, which was evolving during practice,” Brookes explained. “We made a lot of changes to the bike this weekend and at the start of Superpole it came into the range where my confidence built.

“Starting from 14th wasn’t ideal, but during the early stages of the race I had a good feeling for the bike and I could fight for some of the top 10 positions. We lost time towards the end as the tyres went away, but hopefully we can get on top of those and have a better race tomorrow.”

When the rain came ahead of Sunday’s second race, all eyes were on Brookes for a strong showing after his Assen heroics, however he was unable to make a major impact on his way to a 12th-place finish.

“The race was pretty much what I expected,” he added on Sunday afternoon. “We tried some different settings with the throttle this weekend, which didn’t work as well for me, and it’s an area we need to look at.

“I think I have could have raced up front, especially as it was wet like Assen, and it would have been great to mix it up with the leaders again. Unfortunately the bike set-up just didn’t work for me today, but it was good to get some more points.

“I’m hoping we can get some better results at Donington and I’m looking forward to racing there again. I will give 100 percent effort, but we have to make sure that the bike is working correctly too so that I feel confident to push it.”

Reigning British champion Brookes sits 15th in the championship standings following the opening six rounds of 12, entering the Donington Park round on 27-29 May in the UK.