Jon Railton has reflected on a steady 2016 . . . and he is already plotting a more spectacular 2017.

The Hunts Post: Little Paxton racer Jon Railton in action during the final round of the Ducati TriOptions Cup series at Brands Hatch. Picture: NIGEL SHEARINGLittle Paxton racer Jon Railton in action during the final round of the Ducati TriOptions Cup series at Brands Hatch. Picture: NIGEL SHEARING (Image: Archant)

Railton rounded off the Ducati TriOptions Cup series with sixth and fifth places in the final two races at Brands Hatch last weekend.

The 25 year-old Boast Plumbing Supplies rider also took sixth place in the overall standings in a season in which a pair of podium finishes in the penultimate round at Dutch circuit, Assen, were his best finishes.

Railton said: “It was a solid final round, but a little bit disappointing not to be able to follow up the great races at Assen with more podium places.

“I did expect to finish somewhere around sixth overall and it shows that I’ve been competitive throughout the year. We’ve been working to improve the bike and I certainly finished the season with the speed to match the front-runners.

The Hunts Post: Little Paxton racer Jon Railton in action during the final round of the Ducati TriOptions Cup series at Brands Hatch. Picture: NIGEL SHEARINGLittle Paxton racer Jon Railton in action during the final round of the Ducati TriOptions Cup series at Brands Hatch. Picture: NIGEL SHEARING (Image: Archant)

“It’s been a positive season on the whole and I’m hoping to be back in the series again in 2017 when the goal will be to challenge for podium places right from the start.”

Railton, who lives in Little Paxton and works in Huntingdon, qualified in second place for the opening race at Brands Hatch, but the dry conditions of that session soon gave way to torrential rain. That caused the first race to be delayed from Saturday until Sunday when a damp track provided a tricky test.

Railton dropped back to sixth following a slow start and had lost touch with the leaders by the time he put in some pleasing lap times towards the end of the race.

He started from fifth on the grid for the second race, which was decided by quickest laps in the opening race, but again had a poor getaway.

He found himself stuck in 12th position before climbing back through the order to finish in the position he started from - fifth.

Railton added: “We put a new clutch on the bike recently and while it did cure a couple of problems, I’ve found it harder to make good starts.

“I just couldn’t get into the groove quickly enough in the first race and it was far from easy having to work back up through the field in the second race, but I managed to make plenty of passes even though there were a lot of damp patches off the racing line.”

Railton has thanked RS Workshop Equipment, Bohn Body Armor, HJC Helmets, The Key Collection & Weise Motorcycle Clothing for their backing during the season.