DIFFICULT DAY FOR SWAN HONDA AT KNOCKHILL The Swan Honda team had a difficult day at the sixth round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Knockhill today. On raceday an early torrential downpour caused a delay before warm up but then James Ellison proved the pace of the Swan Honda by topping the timesheets with Stuart Easton in seventh. However they were unable to translate their early pace into results in the opening race as both Stuart Easton and James Ellison struggled with lack of rear grip which saw them finish in 19th and 24th respectively. The team were ready to make amends in the second race but due to the weather conditions it was cancelled and will now take place at the next round at Snetterton on Saturday following qualifying. Ellison said: “The weekend started well for me and I was getting faster with every session and to qualify fifth was amazing all things considered. This morning it was really wet and that wasn’t a massive issue as in warm up I was fastest to put the Swan Honda team back where we need to be but it didn’t come together in the race. We had a problem with rear traction and we don’t know what the issue was, but we had no drive out of the corners and it was just a nightmare really for both me and Stuart. It was a real hero to zero feeling and it is really disappointing as we had the potential for a podium or maybe even a win with the wet setting we found in warm up. We are going to go back to the drawing board on that one but it is just a shame that we got caught out by the weather and didn’t get the chance to make amends in the second race.” Easton said: “Firstly I want to say thank you to the Knockhill staff and the marshals and officials here today as they worked so hard and the race was just scuppered by the weather and of course there is nothing you can do to stop that. In race one myself and James had the same problem and we are still not sure what caused it, but we just had no rear grip. I kept trying though but finished 19th which is obviously not where I want to be. We made some changes for race two and we think that might have solved the issue, but we never really got the chance to try it. The right decision was made at the end of the day, but I feel for the fans and everyone involved. All in all it was another bad weekend for me so I need to regroup and get myself back on that podium at Snetterton, especially as there is three races now.” Swan Honda team manager Shaun Muir concluded: “We had an issue with the bike setting and both riders suffered from the same problem which we were hoping to rectify for the second race. We obviously didn’t get the chance to put it right here today, but it is the best result all round as the conditions were getting worse and now the team will regroup and come back at Snetterton ready to make amends.” More, from a press release issued by Honda: BROOKES TAKES LEAD IN TITLE STAKES FOR HM PLANT HONDA MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship Round six 4 July Knockhill, Fife, Scotland. BROOKES TAKES LEAD IN TITLE STAKES FOR HM PLANT HONDA Ryuichi Kiyonari took a close second to Michael Rutter in the weather ravaged sixth round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Knockhill, but third in the afternoon’s only race for Josh Brookes was enough to put the HM Plant Honda rider ahead in the title stakes. Practice and qualifying at the Fife circuit had been run in near perfect conditions with Brookes claiming his first pole start of the campaign, but race-day dawned with pouring rain and gusting winds, leaving the riders with a 20 minute wet practice session to dial themselves into the changing conditions. James Ellison, three months on from breaking his thigh in a crash during practice for the second round at Thruxton, ran his Swan Honda fastest in the wet practice, ahead of Rutter with Brookes third, though Kiyonari struggled, running two seconds down on them. Kiyonari and his team worked to dial his bike in ahead of the scheduled 30 lap race, which saw Brookes take an early lead from Rutter and Ellison with Kiyonari eighth but, the riders had barely completed their first lap before a torrential downpour brought out the red-flags. The re-start was to be decided over 20 laps, but on the third lap Dan Linfoot lost control of his Yamaha and the machine collected the luckless Chris Walker, bringing out the red-flags again. It proved to be a case of third lucky as the race was eventually to be decided over 15 laps. Brookes made the early running from Rutter, riding Ducati, and Kiyonari with Ellision third though Stuart Easton on the second Swan Honda was back in tenth place on the opening lap. Kiyonari was hungry for better things and attacked Rutter to go second on the fifth lap and next time around was leading the race from Brookes, but Rutter bit back strongly. He moved into second place on the tenth lap at the Hairpin and then nosed ahead of Kiyonari to take his first victory in the series in two years. Brookes took a distant third, but, with Tommy Hill running back in eighth place Brookes took the lead, by four points, in the title stakes from the Suzuki rider. Easton struggling with grip problems came in 19th, five places ahead of Ellison. The second race was red-flagged on the opening lap as six riders tipped off as rain fell at the first corner, and with conditions deteriorating, and the speed of the wind intensifying the decision was taken to postpone the race. It will now be held on the Saturday evening of the seventh round of championship, 16/17/18 July at Snetterton. Honda BSB personnel comments: Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda): “Very happy with result on Friday and Saturday OK with settings but then it started raining and for me race day morning warm-up practice was not so good. We make small changes and then each time the race was red flagged made more changes and the bike was getting better and better each time. It as not easy to maintain my concentration with race being stopped and re-started, but it is important that I am on the podium. Very difficult out there, but good result for me.” Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda): “These conditions were similar to those at Oulton Park earlier in the season and again I was good where it was wet and where it was dry but where it was in between I was struggling with stability, with the tyre spinning. Maybe we can look at that, but in the race I rolled off the throttle a bit to get the grip, but the main thing is that I finished on the podium. I’m not happy to finish any race in third place, but, it puts me into the lead in the championship and that is always good for the team.” Havier Beltran (team manager HM Plant Honda: “It was another good weekend for us and for the first time Josh now leads the championship standings which is a real boost to the team. Kiyo he has also moved up the order to third with his second place, so overall we are happy. We have had a few problems which we have been working through, but if we have the potential to finish on the podium with those then we will only be stronger once we have ironed those out.” James Ellison (Swan Honda): “The weekend started well for me and I was getting faster with every session and to qualify fifth was amazing all things considered. This morning it was really wet and that wasn’t a massive issue as in warm up I was fastest but it didn’t come together in the race. We had a problem with rear traction and we don’t know what the issue was, but we had no drive out of the corners and it was just a nightmare really for both me and Stuart. It was a real hero to zero feeling and it is really disappointing as we had the potential for a podium or maybe even a win with the wet setting we found in warm up. We are going to go back to the drawing board on that one but it is just a shame that we got caught out by the weather and didn’t get the chance to make amends in the second race.” Stuart Easton (Swan Honda): “In race one myself and James had the same problem and we are still not sure what caused it, but we just had no rear grip. I kept trying though but finished 19th which is obviously not where I want to be. We made some changes for race two and we think that might have solved the issue, but we never really got the chance to try it. The right decision was made at the end of the day, but I feel for the fans and everyone involved. All in all it was another bad weekend for me so I need to regroup and get myself back on that podium at Snetterton, especially as there are three races now.” Shaun Muir (team owner Swan Honda): “We had an issue with the bike setting and both riders suffered from the same problem which we were hoping to rectify for the second race. We obviously didn’t get the chance to put it right here today, but it is the best result all round as the conditions were getting worse and now the team will regroup and come back at Snetterton ready to make amends.” Results Race1 POS / NAME / NAT / BIKE / TIME / GAP 1 / Michael RUTTER / GBR / Ducati – RidersMotorcycles.Com / 13:32.658 / 2 / Ryuichi KIYONARI / JPN / Honda – HM Plant Honda / 13:33.235 / 0.577 3 / Josh BROOKES / AUS / Honda – HM Plant Honda / 13:38.845 / 6.187 4 / Michael LAVERTY / GBR / Suzuki – Relentless Suzuki by TAS / 13:42.021 / 9.363 5 / Alastair SEELEY / GBR / Suzuki – Relentless Suzuki by TAS / 13:45.953 / 13.295 6 / John LAVERTY / GBR / Kawasaki – Buildbase Kawasaki / 13:51.366 / 18.708 7 / Simon ANDREWS / GBR / Kawasaki – MSS Colchester Kawasaki / 13:53.807 / 21.149 8 / Tommy HILL / GBR / Suzuki – Worx Crescent Suzuki / 13:55.891 / 23.233 8 / Gary MASON / GBR / Kawasaki – MSS Colchester Kawasaki / 13:55.891 / 23.233 10 / Chris WALKER / GBR / Suzuki – CW Racing / 14:01.375 / 28.717 11 / Andrew PITT / AUS / Yamaha – Motorspoint Yamaha / 14:02.489 / 29.831 12 / Gary JOHNSON / GBR / Suzuki – AIM Suzuki / 14:02.970 / 30.312 13 / David JOHNSON / AUS / Kawasaki – Two Brothers Racing / 14:03.735 / 31.077 14 / Christian IDDON / GBR / Honda – Sorrymate.com SMT Honda / 14:04.946 / 32.288 15 / Tom TUNSTALL / GBR / Honda – Doodson Motorsport / 14:07.052 / 34.394 Fastest lap: Lap 6 Michael RUTTER GBR Ducati – RidersMotorcycles.Com 53.533 137.58kph Race2 Canceled due to bad weather Championship points Name Total BROOKES 166, HILL 162, KIYONARI 148, LAVERTY 146, RUTTER 139, LAVERTY 108, SEELEY 101, EASTON 92, WALKER 65, JESSOPP 57, BRIDEWELL 50, ELLISON 48, MASON 41, ANDREWS 35, LINFOOT 29. More, from a press release issued by Jason O’Halloran’s publicist: Jason O Halloran secured a good 10th place in the soaking conditions at Knockhill circuit today at round six of the British Supersport Championship. Having only joined the East Coast Yamaha racing team on Monday the young Australian had a tough learning curve over the weekend and suffered every eventuality from a bike problem, a crash and wet conditions. Jason first rode the Yamaha on Friday morning in the first practice session and was unfortunate to suffer an engine problem and was forced to miss the entire session. The team worked extremely hard to re-build the bike and get Jason out for the second session. The Australian made big progress and soon settled in well to riding the Yamaha. His luck once again was not on his side on Saturday morning during first qualifying as he tipped off at the hairpin taking most of the skin off his little finger in the process. Working through the pain and also learning the new bike Jason managed to qualify the East Coast Yamaha in 14th place. However, the weather conditions changed severely overnight and the rain came down by the bucket full, putting doubt in everyone’s mind if the racing would go ahead or not. The race director, Stuart Higgs and his MSVR team did a cracking job in difficult conditions to ensure that all racing that could take place did in between the very heavy rain showers. The race was cut to 15 laps and Jason was unable to get a good start and slipped down through the pack on the opening laps and was lying in 16th place after the first lap. The safety car was deployed on lap five to clear dirt off the track after an incident and this bunched up the riders. The Australian was sat behind Joe Dickinson on lap seven in 14th place but was eager to progress forward. Setting some of the fastest laps during the final stages of the race Jason made some good passing manoeuvres to gain 10th place at the chequered flag. Jason commented “It’s been a very mental week followed by a pretty manic weekend, nothing like being thrown in at the deep end but I can’t thank the East Coast Racing team enough for getting me here to Knockhill and working so hard throughout the weekend. We’ve gone through everything at Knokchill and I’m just really pleased that I brought the bike home with a half decent result. I know things will now start progressing in the direction that I want them too and I want to get some testing down before I go to Snetterton to settle into riding the Yamaha again. I know we had a few issues this weekend but I’m feeling really confident about the rest of the season. Roll on Snetterton.” Race Result Sam Lowes Honda Ben Wilson Kawasaki Dan Cooper Triumph Ian Hutchinson Honda Alex Lowes Yamaha James Westmoreland Yamaha Glen Richards Honda Graeme Gowland Honda Jack Kennedy Yamaha Jason O Halloran East Coast Racing Yamaha More, from a press release issued by British Superbike Championship organizers: RUTTER WINS BUT WEATHER HAS THE FINAL SAY MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship Round six Knockhill, Fife 4 July Michael Rutter enjoyed his first victory in two years in the weather blitzed sixth round of MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship but the RidersMotorcycles.com Ducati rider was denied the opportunity of completing a daily double as the conditions deteriorated forcing the postponement of the second race. Raceday dawned wet and windy, and after two days work in the dry to prepare their bikes, the teams had to make adjustments in the morning wet practice in which James Ellison, three months on from breaking his thigh, set the pace on his Swan Honda, a tenth of a second up on Rutter. Rutter, who traditionally enjoys these conditions, was running second to HM Plant Honda rider Josh Brookes on the opening lap of the first race, but, they had barely completed that lap before a torrential downpour brought out the red-flags. The second attempt to run the race lasted into the fourth lap but as Dan Linfoot tipped off and collected Chris Walker the action was again stopped ahead of what proved to be third time lucky for Rutter. Brookes made the early running, with Rutter second, but soon Ryuichi Kiyonari was nosing into second place and then taking the lead on the sixth lap before Rutter hit back strongly. He found a way ahead of Brookes at the Hairpin and then at two thirds distance in the 15 lap race took Kiyonari and held him off to take the victory by a little over half a second. “I had a second-hand wet tyre in the rear for the third start, and I thought that was it before I’d started but it paid dividends for me at the end,” explained Rutter. “I took it easy, sussed it out and then decided when to go for it it was the luck of the draw really, I could just as easily gone down as won. I was sliding about a lot as the track dried and it was something of a lottery,” added Rutter. “I didn’t want anyone to pass me then but it was hard work to stay there. I lost the front end five times but held on and just went for it. I wanted the win, this is unbelievable,” added Rutter Kiyonari, who had struggled in the wet practice reckoned that the red-flags helped him. “Each time the team made changes and the bike was getting better and better this is a good result for me.” His team-mate Brookes had to settle for third place, but the consolation for him was that it was enough to put him into the championship lead, four points ahead of Tommy Hill who ran back in eighth place on his Worx Crescent Suzuki. Gary Johnson took his AIM Suzuki to victory in the Mirror.co.uk BSB-EVO class ahead of Two Brothers Kawasaki rider David Johnson, but Hudson Kennaugh, fifth in class on the MAR Kawasaki, maintained his lead in the chase for the crown. The weather caused problems throughout, and despite the hard working efforts of marshals and circuit staff to keep the Fife track operational, the conditions were the eventual winner. The second Superbike race was red-flagged on the first lap as six riders tumbled as rain fell, and then with the wind speed intensifying the decision was taken to postpone the race until the Saturday evening of the seventh round at Snetterton, July 16/17/18. Results race one, 15 laps Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) 13m 32.658secs Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) +0.577s Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) +6.187s Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +9.363s Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +13.295s John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) +18.708s Simon Andrews (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +21.149s Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +23.233s Gary Mason (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +23.233s Chris Walker (CW Racing Suzuki) +28.717s Championship standings: Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) 166 Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) 162 Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) 148 Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki) 146 Michael Rutter (RidersMotorcycles.com Ducati) 139 John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) 108 More, from a press release issued by GNS Racing: LOWES TAKES VICTORY AT KNOCKHILL GNS Racing Sam Lowes put in a faultless ride at Knockhill today when he took his second win of the year in the Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport Championship on the 600cc Honda. Having taken the lead on the eighth lap, the 19-year-old pulled rapidly away from the rest of the pack to secure his second win of the year and take a 15-point lead in the Championship table. Lowes was again solid in free practice and qualifying, held in dry weather, and was never outside the top five, eventually qualifying in fifth place. However, race day was anything but dry with heavy rain and strong winds hitting the Scottish circuit. Sam was equally comfortable in the wet though and, after completing the first lap in fourth place, he was up to third a lap later right in the wheel tracks of Glen Richards and Ian Hutchinson. The pace car came out for three laps on lap five but when it went in Sam made his move and immediately moved to the front of the pack. Lapping over a second quicker than anyone else, he was almost six seconds clear when the race was stopped due to a number of incidents out on the track. The race was declared a result and with Sam’s main rivals James Westmoreland and Billy McConnell only finishing in 6th and 12th respectively, the 25 points for the win have seen him move into the Championship lead at the half way stage of the season. One of the fallers that caused the red flag was second GNS Racing rider Paul Jordan, the young Ulsterman crashing out of 17th place, fortunately without injury. The 19-year-old had been having a strong ride just on the edge of the points but, more importantly, also lying in third place in the Cup. However, he was one of many riders to fall foul of the difficult conditions although he still lies in fourth place overall in the Cup standings. Sam Lowes: “Fifth place in qualifying wasn’t quite where I wanted to be but, wet or dry, my lap times were consistent so when I saw it was going to be a wet race, I just wanted to have a clean few laps before getting my head down. Once I got some clear track, I just tried to keep as smooth as possible and it all worked out perfectly. The bike was fantastic all weekend, as it has been all year and I’m over the moon to get my second win of the year. I’m leading the Championship now, which is obviously where I want to be, and with the Yamaha boys having a bit of an off day, there’s a bit of a gap there now although there’s still a long way to go. A massive thank you to all the team and sponsors again for giving me a great package to go out there and do the business.” Paul Jordan: “I hit the white line on and highsided, but luckily I’m just a bit battered and bruised. I’m disappointed for myself and the team. I was struggling on Friday and couldn’t get on the pace but I improved on Saturday but it was too far to catch up really. I’m looking forward to Snetterton as I go well there so hopefully we can get back up there in the championship.” Gary Subbington (Team Owner): “I’m pleased for Sam and the team worked exceptionally well again with some very difficult weather conditions to contend with. We knew we had a good bike set up from the morning warm up and the engineers worked well all weekend. We’ve proved another point that we are moving on with the team and if we continue what we are doing the plan is hopefully, if we can get the sponsorship, to move into the Superbike Championship with the same team next year. It’s just a shame that Paul crashed out because he would definitely have been on the podium and more importantly, would have been leading the championship but hopefully he can bounce back at Snetterton.” Fuchs Silkolene British Supersport 600cc Championship (13 laps) 1 Sam Lowes (GNS Racing Honda) 12m24.995s 2 Ben Wilson (Kawasaki) +5.624s 3 Daniel Cooper (Triumph) +6.015s 4 Ian Hutchinson (Honda) +6.788s 5 Alex Lowes (Yamaha) +7.078s 6 James Westmoreland (Yamaha) +7.227s 7 Glen Richards (Honda) +7.518s 8 Graeme Gowland (Honda) +8.505s 9 Jack Kennedy (Yamaha) +8.672s 10 Jason OHalloran (Yamaha) +8.892s Fuchs Silkolene British Supersport 600cc Cup (13 laps) 1 Luke Mossey (Triumph) 2 Patrick McDougall (Yamaha) 3 Jenny Tinmouth (Honda) 4 Craig McLelland (Kawasaki) 5 Max Hunt (Yamaha) DNF Paul Jordan (GNS Racing Honda) Championship standings (after 6 rounds) 1 Lowes (GNS Racing Honda) 106pts 2 Westmoreland 91 3 McConnell 83 4 Wilson 63 5 Gowland 62 6 Kennedy 60 Cup standings (after 6 rounds) 1 McDougall 87pts 2 Tinmouth 82 3 Kneen 68 4 Jones 68 5 Jordan (GNS Racing Honda) 64 More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service: It was a case of red flag after red flag during today’s weather affected round seven of the British Superbike Championship at Knockhill in Scotland, which was eventually abandoned with only one British Superbike race fully completed. It took three separate starts to complete the aforementioned race in atrocious conditions, but Relentless by TAS Suzuki riders Alastair Seeley and Michael Laverty remained fully focused throughout: Laverty carved his way through the pack from his row-five grid slot, eventually settling for fourth place after he had used the best of his Pirelli wet front tyre, in pursuit of the leading trio. Laverty also set the third fastest lap of race one. Series rookie Alastair Seeley got nudged out on the opening lap from his second row grid spot to 11th place but fought back bravely, eventually following his team-mate home for a well-deserved fifth placed finish on his GSX-R1000 Superbike. Michael Laverty did lead the second outing, which was red flagged in the early laps after six riders ended up in the gravel trap, with the meeting eventually abandoned on safety grounds due to gale force winds. The abandoned race two will now be re-run during the next round of the series at Snetterton [July 16 – 18] with grid positions as per the Knockhill race. Michael Laverty: “I was happy enough with fourth place in race one from a fifth row start, as you can’t expect much more than that; although I did have aspirations of winning it at one point, but I over-heated my front tyre in the opening laps making all those early passing manoeuvres. My time for race one secured me a front row start for race two and after getting the holeshot I was planning on taking the win until the red flags came out. I will now have to wait until Saturday at Snetterton for that race. We had a near-perfect weekend at Knockhill apart from my small mistake in qualifying. The team has worked really well again for me this weekend and we are looking forward to the next round.” Alastair Seeley: “I dropped back down the pack on the opening lap in race one, but I picked them off and got right back onto Michael at the end. Unfortunately by that stage, my tyre had chewed up and I was sliding going in and out of the turns. We got some good points on the board today but it’s just a pity the second race was red flagged. I made a good start and had just passed Kiyo for third place and was lining up Rutter when the red flag went out. We are still in the hunt and with an extra race at Snetterton in a couple of week’s time. I have a good chance to get back into that sixth place in the championship standings.” Cameron Donald’s return to the National Superstock series possibly didn’t produce a result the Australian was looking for, but having fought bravely from 20th on lap one to eventually finish in the points in 13th, offered the Melbourne rider some additional track time prior to the Southern 100 on the Isle of Man in just 10 days time. Cameron Donald: “I was happy to see the rain as I felt it was my best chance of making my way through the field. I was up at the front during morning warm-up, but got pushed out during the start of the race. I was starting to make my way through the field when the race was eventually stopped, but I enjoyed my return to BSB and we learned a lot with the GSX-R1000 Superstock machine. Hopefully I can come back again and get in amongst the front guys next time.” Philip Neill – Team Manager: “It was a nightmare day at Knockhill with the weather and I feel for the organisers. Although it is a shame Michael Laverty found himself back in 20th place on the grid after gettingggg up to eighth before the first red flag. I did expect the grid to re-form from the positions they had been in when the red flag went out, but for Michael to come from so far back to fourth place, three times, was unbelievable – especially on a track that is normally so difficult to pass on. “Alastair also had a good race one and made some strong passes, getting the better of some high-calibre opposition to get back behind Michael for fifth. It’s just a pity race two didn’t run full distance as we had high hopes for the win after Michael made a great start and who knows, we maybe could have had both boys on the podium, such was their pace. “This was also a very useful weekend for Cameron Donald, and, as we expected, the British championship task was always going to be a tough one for him having been away for 12 months. To be fair, he will need two or three rounds to really sharpen up to racing at this level again, but he did what we asked of him and improved as the weekend went on – setting quicker laps during the whole race.” Race 1 Result: 1. Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) 2.Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) +0.577s 3.Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) +6.187s 4.Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +9.363s 5.Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +13.295s 6.John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) +18.708s 7.Simon Andrews (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +21.149s 8.Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +23.233s 9.Gary Mason (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +23.233s 10.Chris Walker (CW Racing Suzuki) +28.717s More, from a press release issued Team Suzuki News Service: Weather blighted the sixth round of the British Superbike Championship at Knockhill in Fife: Only the first race was run, and in wet and blustery conditions Worx Crescent Suzuki’s Tommy Hill found himself battling tyre issues to bring his GSX-R1000 home in eighth place. The second race was abandoned due to still worsening conditions after being red flagged on the first lap following a six-rider crash. That race will now be rolled over to the forthcoming Snetterton round, in a fortnight, taking place on the Saturday – after the Roll for Pole qualifier – with starting positions the same as those at Knockhill. Tommy Hill: “That was a disappointing end to the weekend after what had been a good build-up. In the first race I had a big issue with the treaded rear tyre which ripped to pieces over the 15 laps of the race – I was lucky to bring it home. I don’t mind the rain and have scored good results in wet races in the past, so this was a major disappointment. “With that result I’ve also now lost my championship lead, although I’m only four points behind. I’m still leading the podium points tally though, which are the only ones that count once the Championship moves into the Showdown phase from Croft, so I’m keen to get to Snetterton and claw those points back and add further to those vital podium points. And that’s a good track for me as I scored Pirelli’s first ever podium in BSB there back in 2006.” Jack Valentine – Team Manager: “Today has been a total washout. This morning, in what was a soggy warm-up; Tommy was more-than-happy with his wet set-up. We changed nothing for the race but the tyre never gripped from the off and was shredded by the end of the race, which had been shortened to 15 laps after two stoppages. With gale force winds it was the right decision to abandon the meeting, but that doesn’t stop the feeling of disappointment. “With the Championship tightening up both in terms of championship and podium points, Snetterton, with three races on the programme, will become a very important round.” MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship: 1. Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) 2. Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) +0.577s 3. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) +6.187s 4. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +9.363s 5. Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +13.295s 6. John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) +18.708s 7. Simon Andrews (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +21.149s 8. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +23.233s 9. Gary Mason (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +23.233s 10. Chris Walker (CW Racing Suzuki) +28.717s BSB Championship standings (after six rounds): 1. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) 166pts 2. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) 162 3. Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) 148 4. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) 146 5. Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) 139 6. John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) 108 16. Yukio Kagayama (Worx crescent Suzuki) 25