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Cameron Donald the Amazing Auzzie
Written by Tina Salvage   
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He has certainly come a long way since he began riding at the age of six on his Suzuki RM50. Following in the footsteps of his brothers and father who were also former racers, Cameron began taking racing seriously at the age of fifteen where he began his transition from dirt to road. This was an interesting time as he had gone from the ultra aggressive, sideways, sliding dirt track to the most precise and razor sharp handling 125cc class, where any sideways antics would usually end up tumbling off the track.

Cameron had established himself as one of the fastest dirt track riders in the country claiming many race wins and state titles on the way. He developed his own unique style with a combination of dirt track sliding skills and Grand Prix bike precision. It was here that Cameron began asserting himself as one of the most promising young riders consistently finishing on the podium at Australian Championship level..

With such impressive results behind him Cameron was approached by leading privateer team owner David Bancell and asked to ride a Suzuki GSXR600 in the Australian Supersport title. Cameron took to the bigger bikes well being able to use the extra power of the 600cc to slide the bike with throttle control, similar to how he did in dirt track.

From there Cameron went on to compete at a National and International level where he has achieved an astonishing list of race wins and championships to his name.

2003 Cameron competed in the Australian Formula Xtreme Championship on a Yamaha R1 prepared by a local tuning business Dynobike. This was his first year on the 1000cc machine where he won the Victorian Superbike Championship ranking him top privateer in the National Formula Xtreme Championship. 2003 was no time to rest as Cameron also rode for team China Zong Shen in the Asian Road Racing Championship on a Yamaha R6. He won three races and finished 2nd overall in his first attempt at the championship title, each circuit being new to him. Also in 2003 Cameron won the prestigious Macau Supersport Grand Prix for the second time (2001).

2004 Cameron Donald competed in the Asian Road Racing Championship riding for Team China Yuan XG Jao. He also raced in two rounds of the British Superbike Championship (Mondello Park and Thruxton).

2005 was the year of his debut performances at the North West 200 and the Isle of Man TT where he was the best newcomer in both events. His best result being 11th in the Supersport Junior TT. Shortly after he was contacted by the official Honda UK Road Racing team 'Team DMRR Honda' to contest the Dundrod 150 and Ulster Grand Prix International road races. Riding 600cc Supersport, 1000cc Superstock and Superbike machines and achieving amazing results at his first attempt at these events, his best result being 1st place at the Dundrod 150 in the 600 Supersport race.

Later in 2005 he competed at the Singapore Supermotard International race which he won with flying colours and then went on to the MotoGP Support races in Sepang Malaysia winning both Superbike races.

2006 was where his career really began to take off and he seemed to win and set the fastest laps where ever he went. Including Kells, Souther100, Skerries, Bush Road Races, Tandragee 100 and Walderstown Road Race. The most memorable was when he came 2nd to John McGuiness in the Senior TT. He also claimed 2 fifths in the Superbike and the Supersport Junior in the same week.

2007 saw a downturn for Cameron as he crashed at the North West 200 at the Juniper chicane breaking his collar bone and consequently missing the Isle of Man TT. However he ended his season on a high with two wins at the Skerries road race (Ireland).

2008 Cameron continued his amazing winning success. His first win was on the Tas Relentless Suzuki Superbike at Bishops Court. The North West 200 saw him on the podium with a 3rd in the Superstock and a 2nd in the Superbike race. Following this at the Isle of Man TT he rode to victory in both the Superbike and Superstock races. In the final race of the week he was in an incredible battle with John McGuiness where they kept swapping the lead making it one of the most exciting races of the week for the spectators but Cameron had to settle for second place as his foot slipped off the footpeg on the final lap suffering from an oil leak.

What hard luck that must have been for him. This only leaves us waiting in anticipation and excitement for this years TT. We recently caught up with the great man himself to find out how he has been doing:-

What have you been doing during the off season?
My off season has been spent back home in Australia doing some work ( plumbing) and spending time with friends and family before I head back to the UK.

Have you done any fitness training to support your racing?
I do a lot of fitness training as most of my hobbies are fitness related and that all helps in keeping fit for the upcoming race season.

What type of training have you been doing?
I swim and ride my mountain bike during the week and every weekend I am away water skiing and riding my MX bike. I am feeling confident that I have put in the ‘hard yards’ for a big 2009 racing season.

How do you think 2008 went for you?
Last season was an excellent year for myself recording my first international road race wins and British championship podium with Relentless by TAS Suzuki.

Are you still with TAS Suzuki for the season?
I will again be racing for the team and look forward to building on 2008, they are a great bunch of guys that all work hard and enjoy racing as much as the riders.

What bike(s) are you riding?
Suzuki GSXR600 in Supersport
Suzuki GSXR1000 in Superstock
Suzuki GSXR1000 in Superbike

What and when is your first outing?
Hope to get a run out on the new bikes in Ireland before round one of the British champs at Brands Hatch.

How are you adapting to the new bike?
I have not ridden the all new 2009 model GSXR1000 as yet but all reports are positive and the 2008 model was mega so am confident that it will be the tool for the job.

Are you happy with the bike(s) you are riding this year?
My crew at TAS do a very good job of preparing and tuning our Suzuki machines so I am always happy to be on any of the bikes in the line up.

After 2 wins at the TT last year what do you expect to do this year?
After my first TT win, any other wins at the TT are a bonus as I would be happy to have just one 6 lap TT race to my name but then the Superstock win and the second in the senior were just icing on the cake. For 2009 I want to work at improving how I ride the TT course and I hope that will see me on the rostrum again but I will just focus on working hard and let the results take care of themselves.

Has your life changed since being a TT winner?
Life is good and the TT wins got me a lot of TV and press coverage back home in Australia and that has been nice as my home is so far from my sport that often people back in oz don’t get to see real road racing.

What other goals have you set for yourself this year?
My goal for this year is to keep improving how I ride the bike and work with my mechanics to get the best set up possible and enjoy the process!

Are there any other comments you would like to make?
A big thanks to the TAS team and all our sponsors as they all work hard to achieve results and with people around you like that it makes the job of staying focused and motivated very easy, also all the road race fans that have supported me since I first started riding the roads are such a great bunch of people and have shared in my results along the way.

We would like to say thank you to Cameron for speaking with Paddock Gossip and we wish him every success in his future racing. With his incredible talent he is definitely one to watch!

 
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