Bennetts Suzuki’s Tommy Bridewell bounced back from the disappointment of crashing-out of yesterday’s opening race at the Oulton Park MCE British Superbike Championship by racing his GSX-R1000 to third place in today’s second race.
Bridewell, who arrived at round nine of the series still harbouring ambitions of a place in the series Showdown, was unlucky to fall from fourth place in the first of the weekend’s three races after qualifying on the front row.
However, after a strong sixth-place finish in race two – despite suffering the after effects of yesterday’s crash – the Wiltshire rider took an impressive third place in the final race of the meeting, ending a frustrating weekend on a high note and further underlining the potential of the Bennetts Suzuki team and the GSX-R1000 package.
Tommy Bridewell:
“We’ve had a bike capable of finishing on the podium in all three races this weekend to be honest, and it’s a credit to the team who have put so much effort in and built a brand new bike for today after yesterday’s crash. It’s been a real struggle for me on the bike today as I’ve been really sore and stiff. It was difficult to move around and difficult to get the bike to turn. I really struggled in the first race today but I was a little better in race two and a bit more relaxed, and it was good to give the team a podium after the effort they’ve put in. We’re not in the Showdown, and now we can just enjoy riding our bike in every session before the end of the season, but I want to put the bike on the top-step of the podium before the year’s out.”
Martin Halsall – Team Owner:
“That podium shows what we’ve been capable of all weekend. It’s actually a little bittersweet because we had a chance of a place in the Showdown coming into this weekend, and we had the pace to beat many of our Showdown rivals. However, because of the crash, it’s a bit of a case of what could have been. That said, we’re delighted to end the weekend on such a high note, and the podium is a reward for everyone in the team for all of the hard work that’s been put into making us a regular front-runner in the second half of this season. We might not be in the Showdown, but we’ll be racing for more podiums before the season’s out.”
Race Two Result: 1. Leon Haslam, 2. James Ellison, 3. Dan Linfoot, 4. Jason O’Halloran, 5. Luke Mossey, 6. Tommy Bridewell (Bennetts Suzuki GSX-R1000).
Race Three Result: 1. Leon Haslam, 2. Luke Mossey, 3. Tommy Bridewell (Bennetts Suzuki GSX-R1000), 4. Michael Laverty, 5. Shane Byrne.
More, from a press release issued by Smiths Racing:
Top Ten For Kiyo At Oulton Park
Double British champions, Gloucester-based Smiths Racing BMW, were back in action this weekend with round nine of the MCE British Superbike Championship taking place at Oulton Park in Cheshire Ryuichi Kiyonariand new team member Ryuichi Kiyonari ensured it was a successful weekend with a top ten finish and points in two of the three races.
Having qualified for yesterday’s opening 18-lap race in 20th and 21st respectively, Kiyonari and team-mate Jakub Smrz dropped back in the early stages and gave themselves a lot of work to do but they kept working hard and, continually moving forward, they were eventually rewarded with 16th and 18th place finishes respectively although it meant they both just missed out on championship points.
With Kiyo starting today’s opening encounter from the more advanced position of 18th, a great start immediately saw him jump up the order to 13th and the former triple champion remained in the points throughout. By half race distance, ‘Kiyo’ had moved up to 12th and found himself part of a six rider battle for seventh with the Japanese ace taking a strong tenth place at the chequered flag. And whilst he wasn’t able to replicate that in the third and final race of the weekend, he took a hard earned 15th to claim another championship point.
Czech Republic rider Smrz, meanwhile, had had to start today’s first race from 24th and although he made progress, it wasn’t as rapid as Kiyonari’s and 18th place was the outcome after the challenging 18 laps. It was a similar story in the last race and whilst he was only four seconds behind Kiyonari at the chequered flag, 19th place was the end result so he finished the meeting without adding to his points tally.
Ryuichi Kiyonari: “It’s been a good weekend for me and session by session, race by race things have got better. The final race wasn’t so good but, apart from that, it’s been good to be back on a BMW. It’s my first time on this particular bike and, obviously, my first time with the team but everyone’s worked really hard and although there are a number of things we need to improve, the solutions we’ve found so far have worked. With Donington, Assen and Brands coming up, we have some good circuits so we’ll be looking to keep moving forward. Tenth in race two showed what we can do and we made no mistakes over the three days so it’s been an important weekend for all of us and also a positive one.”
Jakub Smrz: “It’s definitely been a tough weekend and it’s ultimately been one where we’ve been testing many things. We tried many things with the bike this weekend and changed many things Jakub Smrzwhilst it’s also helped having Kiyo on the team as he has a lot of experience, has won many races and knows the BMW well. Changing set-up for each race certainly isn’t ideal and finishing at the lower end of the top twenty is disappointing but I feel there has been some positives to take away with us and the next three circuits should suit me a lot better. The pace in BSB this year is incredible but the whole team continues to work really hard so, hopefully, I can give them some points at Donington.”
Rebecca Smith, Team Manager: “The biggest issue with Kiyo is a lack of track time as he hasn’t ridden since the beginning of August and this was the first time out on our bike. It’s different to the BMW he rode in 2014 so it’s all about trying to find the right mix. He’s made some good steps forward this weekend so we’re confident we can get there and are both willing to work hard to get there. If we can get more top ten finishes like we did in race two, we’ll all be happy. Kuba’s found the going tough this weekend and he’s naturally very disappointed to miss out on the points again. Having Kiyo on the opposite side of the garage will undoubtedly help as we’ve double the data to look at and double the ideas and the two riders have worked well together. There are three rounds remaining so we’ll hopefully end the season in a positive fashion.”
Round ten of the series takes place next weekend (16/18 September) at Donington Park, Leicestershire. For more information, please visit www.britishsuperbike.com and www.britishsuperbike.com
MCE British Superbike Championship race one (18 laps)
1 Leon Haslam (Kawasaki)
2 James Ellison (Kawasaki)
3 Peter Hickman (Kawasaki)
4 Jason O’Halloran (Honda)
5 Dan Linfoot (Honda)
6 Richard Cooper (BMW)
16 Ryuichi Kiyonari (Smiths Racing BMW)
18 Jakub Smrz (Smiths Racing BMW)
MCE British Superbike Championship race two (18 laps)
1 Leon Haslam (Kawasaki)
2 James Ellison (Kawasaki)
3 Dan Linfoot (Honda)
4 Jason O’Halloran (Honda)
5 Luke Mossey (Kawasaki)
6 Tommy Bridewell (Suzuki)
10 Ryuichi Kiyonari (Smiths Racing BMW)
18 Jakub Smrz (Smiths Racing BMW)
MCE British Superbike Championship race three (18 laps)
1 Leon Haslam (Kawasaki)
2 Luke Mossey (Kawasaki)
3 Tommy Bridewell (Suzuki)
4 Michael Laverty (BMW)
5 Shane Byrne (Ducati)
6 Richard Cooper (BMW)
15 Ryuichi Kiyonari (Smiths Racing BMW)
19 Jakub Smrz (Smiths Racing BMW)
Championship Positions (after nine rounds)
1 Haslam 546pts
2 Byrne 543
3 O’Halloran 513
Ellison 513
5 Linfoot 511
6 Mossey 506
18 Kiyonari 30
22 Smrz 21
More, from a press release issued by Quattro Plant Kawasaki:
Mossey seals Showdown place with superb podium position
Just a few hours after becoming a father for the first time, Luke Mossey had his finest moment in his short British Superbike Championship career on Sunday when second place in the third race at Oulton Park sealed his, and Quattro Plant Kawasaki’s, place in the three-round ‘Showdown’ which gets underway in a week’s time.
Going into the three-race weekend, Luke was seven points adrift of one of the coveted top six positions and having qualified in fifth place for Saturday’s opening race, he completed the first lap in the same position before moving up to fourth on lap five. Running comfortably in the leading pack, it looked like the Cambridge resident would challenge for a podium but as the race wore on, he began to lose grip from his softer rear tyre and he eventually had to settle for seventh place.
However, his rapid early pace meant he started Sunday’s first encounter from the front row and the 23-year old started strongly to move into fourth place. On both laps nine and 13 though he overshot the Hizzy’s chicane giving him work to do on both occasions to fight his way back from seventh. This he duly did though and fifth place meant he was just two points off a Showdown place going into the final race of the weekend.
He saved the best until last though and, once more starting from the front row, a good start to the third and final race saw him move up to third on the fifth lap. Here he remained until the end of lap 13 when he moved up to second, which he duly held onto until the chequered flag. It gave him his best ever BSB result and with Michael Laverty finishing in fourth and Dan Linfoot crashing out, he moved up to fifth overall in the title table.
He’ll now contest the three round Showdown with the five other riders with the seven remaining races determining who will become the 2016 British Superbike Championship.
Team-mate Filip Backlund, meanwhile, found himself back in 27th after qualifying but he made good progress in Saturday’s race so much so that not only did he cross the line in 19th, he also set his fastest lap of the weekend. Going into Sunday’s two races with more confidence, the Swede was hoping to better that result and add some more points to his tally but, unfortunately, he had to settle for another 19th and 20th place finishes in Sunday’s two races.
There was heartache for Dickies British Supersport Championship contender Andrew Reid though after his title aspirations ended on Friday afternoon. The Northern Irishman had been running inside the top three in the two free practice sessions only to crash out at Lodge Corner and sustain a broken scaphoid which brought his weekend to an early end and curtail both his and the team’s hopes of claiming the Championship.
Luke Mossey: “I’m absolutely speechless and was a bit teary on the slow down lap after the last race – to make the Showdown has always been our aim but to finally achieve it is amazing and the whole team and myself are ecstatic. Becoming a dad in the morning was the greatest feeling ever and to top it off with the results today makes it more special and puts the cherry on the cake. We’ve all worked so hard for this but now we’re in the Showdown I’ll be aiming for my first ever win – we want to give the very best account of ourselves and I’ll be giving 110% in all seven races.”
Filip Backlund: “I always want to score points and that’s always my aim so it’s obviously disappointing not to have achieved that. After Saturday’s race, where I felt we made really good progress, I thought that would be more than a possibility on Sunday but the changes we made for the first race didn’t go in our favour so we went back to the original setting for the final race. I still need to work hard and really focus in the first few laps as I’m losing too much time. My aim for the final rounds is to fix that and do everything I can to get back into the points.”
Pete Extance, Team Owner: “What a weekend! For Luke to make it into the Showdown is quite simply brilliant and the whole team is over the moon. He showed great pace all weekend and thoroughly deserved his final race podium – to seal a Showdown place with that result shows what a talented rider he is. He kept his head at all times and rode very maturely throughout so now we’re in the Showdown we aim to do everything we can to challenge for the race wins. It’s testament to Luke’s talent and the whole team’s hard work that we’re there so we can’t wait for it to all begin!”
“Obviously Andy’s injury was the downside to the weekend and it’s a great shame that we can’t be challenging for both the Superbike and Supersport Championships. It’s unfortunate but these things can happen in racing so the important thing now is for Andy to get his wrist fixed and, hopefully, be back in action before the season’s over.”
The next round takes place at Donington Park, Leicestershire on September 16-18.
MCE British Superbike Championship race one (18 laps)
1 Leon Haslam (Kawasaki)
2 James Ellison (Kawasaki)
3 Peter Hickman (Kawasaki)
4 Jason O’Halloran (Honda)
5 Dan Linfoot (Honda)
6 Richard Cooper (BMW)
7 Luke Mossey (Quattro Plant Teccare Kawasaki)
19 Filip Backlund (Quattro Plant Cool Kawasaki)
MCE British Superbike Championship race two (18 laps)
1 Leon Haslam (Kawasaki)
2 James Ellison (Kawasaki)
3 Dan Linfoot (Honda)
4 Jason O’Halloran (Honda)
5 Luke Mossey (Quattro Plant Teccare Kawasaki)
6 Tommy Bridewell (Suzuki)
19 Filip Backlund (Quattro Plant Cool Kawasaki)
MCE British Superbike Championship race three (18 laps)
1 Leon Haslam (Kawasaki)
2 Luke Mossey (Quattro Plant Teccare Kawasaki)
3 Tommy Bridewell (Suzuki)
4 Michael Laverty (BMW)
5 Shane Byrne (Ducati)
6 Richard Cooper (BMW)
20 Filip Backlund (Quattro Plant Cool Kawasaki)
Championship Positions (after nine rounds)
1 Haslam 326pts
2 Byrne 290
3 O’Halloran 237
4 Ellison 180
5 Mossey 173
6 Linfoot 172
27 Backlund 2
More, from a press release issued by ePayMe Yamaha:
High hopes for ePayMe Yamaha at Donington Park after Oulton Park triple-header
The ePayMe Yamaha team arrive at the tenth round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Donington Park this weekend ready to fight for their first podium finish with John Hopkins after making positive steps forward at Oulton Park.
Hopkins showed strong pace throughout the weekend to make it into the final stage of Datatag Qualifying before finishing just outside the top ten in twelfth place in the opening Saturday race in another incredibly close MCE BSB race.
The Californian was battling in the leading group in the second race of the weekend, pushing for a podium finish before a crash at Shell corner ended his momentum. With the event being the first triple-header of the weekend Hopkins was bidding to come back strong again in race three, however opting for the harder SC1 tyre didn’t pay off and after dropping down the order he later retired.
Australian Parkes had a strong weekend despite it only being his second visit to the Cheshire circuit, following up a pair of 14th places with a solid tenth place in the final race of the weekend. He will now miss this weekend due to World Endurance duties before returning for Assen in two weeks’ time.
Hopkins said: “I couldn’t have been more frustrated and disappointed with how we ended Oulton Park, I was literally pulling my hair out as we had the pace – we were so close and right there to be able to run at the front consistently.
“To walk away with less than top ten finishes doesn’t show the progress that we have made and the team have worked hard all year long. I have my strength back now in my right shoulder and I am feeling good. If anything, race two we had a really good shot at it, the bike was working well and I didn’t want to let O’Halloran go. I just pushed it that little bit too hard over the edge and I just lost the front and that was it. I bruised my shoulder a little bit but it wasn’t horrendous.
“We tried a harder tyre in the second race and I was losing it and I had no edge grip and high-siding every time I touched the throttle, so the race was over. I just want to get ready for this weekend at Donington now.
“I am completely going into Donington with the mindset of being on the podium and hopefully not being out of the top five all weekend long – that is the plan. I want to win as I feel we have so much to make up for this season. I feel bad for Tommy as he has put together a great team and we have the package to make it happen. We have had bad luck and reasons why we have struggled at points this year, but I am excited and more motivated than ever to try and be back on the podium finally this weekend.”
Parkes added: “It was a tough weekend for us, as it was only the second time I had been at Oulton Park, but we made good progress and I’m pleased I could fight for the top ten in the last race. We made some changes to the bike which improved my pace and we learned a lot. It should put us in a good place for the rest of the season and the final two rounds. Big thanks to Tommy and everyone in the ePayMe Yamaha team.”
Hill said: “The weekend started really positive; John was at the sharp end and so we are really gutted with the way it ended. John made the final qualifying stage again and we know there is still more to come from him when we have another shot at Superpole.
“We were getting so close to our first podium and John was with the leading pack and he just pushed that little bit too hard and he crashed. I feel that we are getting so close to our first podium in the championship and now we are looking forward to Donington Park, which is probably one of John’s strongest on the calendar.
“Broc showed improvements throughout the weekend at Oulton Park, especially as he has only been to the track once before, and it certainly isn’t the easiest one to pick up lots of time quickly. It was great for him to be back in the top ten and although he misses this weekend we look forward to having him back with us at Assen.”