Another Podium for Shakey 2007 Bennetts British Superbike Championship Round 5 Snetterton, Norfolk Sunday 20th May 2007 Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport rider Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne overcame the disappointment of a race one retirement to bounce back with a superb podium finish in race two at round five of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship held at a hot and humid Snetterton circuit in Norfolk today. After starting from pole position, the 30 year old Zurich based Londoner was hopeful of a good performance at a circuit he traditionally does well at but his hopes were dashed early on in the opening race when an electrical problem caused the VK backed Honda Fireblade to slow. However, Byrne bounced back in race two whereby he circulated with the leading riders for much of the race until a pace car intervention closed up the field. But in the remaining few laps Shakey pulled away with the eventual race winner Ryuichi Kiyonari and second place Jonathan Rea to finish up on the podium for the third time this season making it a Honda 1-2-3. Meanwhile team mate Tom Sykes continued his impressive start to the season with a career best pair of fourth place finishes to back up his more experienced team mate. The 21 year old from Huddersfield showed maturity beyond his years as he diced with the more experienced riders in the field to bring his bike home just off the podium in both races. As a result Sykes lies in sixth place in the Championship with Shakey in seventh going into the next round at Mondello Park in Ireland in four weeks time. Shane Byrne: “I just tried as hard as I could and every lap was fast but just not quite fast enough. I could catch the other Hondas up at the chicane and at the end of the back straight, but they just pulled away from me and it was so frustrating. When the pace car came out I thought it was my chance to catch up but all of us were just as fast as each other. I’m looking forward to the break before Mondello, but the bike is agile which is what you need for Mondello so it should be good.” Tom Sykes: “I’ve had two fantastic results today. The team has been working really hard all season and we have a really strong package, and the bike is especially good along the long straights. I struggled for the first few laps after the pace car went in but the tyres just came back in and I just managed to squeeze past Haslam to grab fourth place. I’m hoping to get on the podium soon and hopefully we will be up there in the near future.” Paul Bird: “It’s been a good day and we’ve shown the true potential of both the riders and the bikes. We were just a bit unlucky with the rear wheel sensor on Shakey’s bike in the first race or I’m sure it would have been two podiums but that’s how it goes sometimes. I’m sure a win is just around the corner and yet again Tom just keeps banging top results in week in, week out.” Race 1 Result 1, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 24m00.140s, 2, Jonathan Rea (Honda) +0.277s, 3, Leon Haslam (Ducati) +8.209s, 4, Tom Sykes (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +12.981s, 5, Leon Camier (Honda) +14.185s, 6, Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) +14.379s, 7, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +18.471s, 8, Cal Crutchlow (Suzuki) +21.387s, 9, Chris Walker (Suzuki) +28.255s, 10, Tommy Bridewell (Suzuki) +28.552s. Race 2 Result 1, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 26m56.071s, 2, Jonathan Rea (Honda) +0.625s, 3, Shane Byrne (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +0.920s, 4, Tom Sykes (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +4.240s, 5, Leon Haslam (Ducati) +4.312s, 6, Leon Camier (Honda) +5.650s, 7, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +6.076s, 8, Scott Smart (Kawasaki) +10.530s, 9, Chris Walker (Suzuki) +10.720s, 10, Ollie Bridewell (Suzuki) +13.874s. Bennetts British Superbike Championship Positions after Round 5 1, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 190pts 2, Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) 179pts 3, Jonathan Rea (Honda) 149pts 4, Leon Haslam (Ducati) 131pts 5, Leon Camier (Honda) 117pts 6, Tom Sykes (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) 106pts 7, Shane Byrne (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) 87pts 8, Chris Walker (Suzuki) 76pts 9, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) 70pts 10, Michael Rutter (Kawasaki) 50pts More, from a press release issued by Rizla Suzuki: Rizla Suzuki’s Cal Crutchlow showed determination and sheer speed during a tough fifth round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Snetterton in Norfolk today. Crutchlow did not allow high-speed crashes on Friday and Saturday hold him back and in the opening race, starting from 11th on the grid in warm sunshine, he took nearly three-quarters of a second from his best previous lap time as he fought his way to eighth. In the second race he started from the back of the grid on his spare bike after his number one Rizla Suzuki developed an electrical fault during the sighting lap. Out of 30 starters, he worked his way up to 9th by the 16th lap, but just before a safety car incident he was forced to retire when fluid on his boot meant he couldn’t change gear. Chris Walker finished with a pair of ninths on his Rizla Suzuki. Despite every effort, he never found a comfortable set-up on his GSX-R1000 to allow him to run with the leaders. Honda’s Ryuichi Kiyonari won both races. Rizla Suzuki will be at Donington Park in Derbyshire next Saturday, May 26th, at BikeFestUK, where it will be testing on track throughout the day. The next round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship is at Mondello Park in the Republic of Ireland on Sunday, June 17th. Cal Crutchlow: “The opening race was good and my lap times competitive. I asked for a few changes I think would have helped for race two but never got a chance to try them as I had to start on my number two bike. I was then gutted after battling into the top 10 and having to retire and not scoring any points as a result. “My heart says I want to be scoring in the top six and fighting for podium finishes. My head tells me that I am learning more every weekend. My skills for understanding, setting up and racing a Superbike are developing and that’s my main objective for now; the top six results will come soon, I am sure. Final word goes to my team technicians – you guys were brilliant this weekend, thanks for all the support. You are ace.” Chris Walker: “If there were rewards for effort then we would be on the top step of the podium. We tried our hearts out this weekend but no matter what we did, we couldn’t compete at the front. “Our performance this weekend is both confusing and frustrating because we know we can fight for the podium after the Silverstone results. I’ll be talking with my technicians about a test plan for next weekend that will hopefully see us back at the sharp end of the races soon.” Simon Buckmaster – Team Manager: “It’s been a difficult weekend for Rizla Suzuki, there’s no hiding that. On the plus side Cal has again impressed with his determination, attitude and speed despite a couple of crashes and poor luck. He leaves here a wiser and more accomplished Superbike rider. “Chris has struggled for the second race meeting in a row to extract the best performance from his Rizla Suzuki and that is something, along with a number of technical issues that we will be analysing and addressing over the next couple of days. “The entire team has worked very hard this weekend but knows there will be no respite. We are testing at Donington Park at BikeFestUK on Saturday and need to make it count so we can go to Mondello Park in Ireland optimistic we can achieve good results – the team needs more effort from the riders and technicians alike. “One thing that has lifted our spirits is Chris Vermeulen’s MotoGP victory in Le Mans today – well done to our sister Rizla Suzuki team, we hope we can emulate your success soon.” Race One Result: 1: Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 24:00.140, 2: Jonathan Rea (Honda) +0.277, 3: Leon Haslam (Ducati) +8.209, 4: Tom Sykes (Honda) +12.981, 5: Leon Camier (Honda) +14.185, 6: Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) +14.379, 7: Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +18.471, 8: Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki) +21.387, 9: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki) +28.255, 10: Tommy Bridewell (Suzuki) +28.552. Race Two Result: 1: Kiyonari 26:56.071, 2: Rea +0.625, 3: Shane Byrne (Honda) +0.920, 4: Sykes +4.240, 5: Haslam +4.312, 6: Camier +5.650, 7: Hill +6.076, 8: Scott Smart (Kawasaki) +10.530, 9: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki) +10.720, 10: Ollie Bridewell (Suzuki) +13.874. DNF: Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki). Championship Positions (after five of 13 rounds): 1: Kiyonari 190, 2: Lavilla 179, 3: Rea 149, 4: Haslam 131, 5: Camier 117, 6: Sykes 106, 7: Byrne 87, 8: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki) 76, 9: Hill 70, 10: Michael Rutter (Kawasaki) 50. 12: Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki) 43.