Essex rider Danny Buchan maintained his lead in the National Superstock 1000 Championship as the Morello Racing Kawasaki star took a second and first place at Oulton Park.

With the gap to Richard Cooper now at 15 points, he now needs to finish fifth at the final round at Brands Hatch next month to wrap up the title.

A perfect start for Buchan, of Maldon, saw him grab the lead off the line but Cooper went with him and there was never more than a tenth of a second between the duo for the first half of the race.

He slipped back to second as Cooper moved ahead at Old Hall and he then ran onto the grass exiting Shell Oils corner, which put him over a second behind.

He set the fastest lap of the race as he tried to reel Cooper back in but had to be content with second place at the chequered flag, 0.527s behind Cooper.

The second race was cut to 11 laps and was held on a damp but drying track and although Cooper took an initial lead on the opening lap, Buchan moved ahead at the final corner to take over at the front.

There was never more than half a second between the pairing but the combination of his own fast laps and a good run through the back markers meant he stormed home for a convincing 6.3 second win.

Buchan said: “I shot myself in the foot in the first race when I ran onto the grass as up until then I felt really comfortable.

“I was literally only a couple of inches over the white line but it was my own mistake and although I managed to claw back some of the gap, I couldn’t get any closer.

“The second race was equally difficult and Richard kept me honest throughout. The mixed conditions played into my hands and the bike was absolutely faultless so I can’t thank the team enough.

“It’s now down to the final meeting and with Richard being the class rider that he is I’m expecting another tough battle.”