SHANNONVILLE, ON Matt McBride earned his first career Parts Canada Superbike Championship pole position during qualifying Friday for the final round of the series at Shannonville Motorsport Park. Riding the Riders Choice Suzuki GSX-R1000, the Mississauga, ON racer lapped the 2.45km Shannonville ‘Pro’ track in one minute, 4.900 seconds, just breaking Francis Martin’s lap record for the track of 1:04.902. “We had a little work to do this morning but it paid off,” said McBride, who picked up the $500 Vicious-I Pole Position Award for his performance. “The bike was working really well. I feel pretty confident for the race. I think there’s a little more in us.” Qualifying was brought forward a day due to concerns about weather conditions on Saturday, as the remains of tropical storm Ernesto are scheduled to pass through the Shannonville area. Granby, QC’s Kevin Lacombe gained a point on Parts Canada Superbike Championship leader Jordan Szoke by qualifying fourth fastest on his Team Toyota Yamaha / Picotte Performance Yamaha YZF-R1 at 1:05.294. Lacombe heads into Sunday’s season finale 40 points behind Szoke, 296-256. A 14th-place finish by Szoke will assure the Brantford, ON rider of his third national Superbike title. Szoke was seventh fastest Friday at 1:05.487 on his Canadian Kawasaki Motors Kawasaki ZX-10R, as just over half a second covered the top seven in an incredibly tight Superbike field. “Being half a second out is nothing to be ashamed of,” said Szoke, who has won five of the six Superbike races this year. “We’ll make a significant change to the front end, but I’m in a good position as far as the championship goes.” Pascal Picotte of St-Cecile Milton, QC qualified second fastest at 1:05.084 on his Team Toyota Yamaha / Picotte Performance Yamaha YZF-R1 and Cochrane, AB’s Clint McBain will start third on Sunday after turning a 1:05.166 on his final lap on the Team Suzuki / Blackfoot Suzuki GSX-R1000. In other action at Shannonville, Lacombe gained four points on Szoke in the Hindle Exhaust Pro 600 Sport Bike class by claiming pole for Sunday’s race with a time of 1:06.498 on his Yamaha YZF-R6. Szoke, who will start seventh on his Kawasaki ZX-6RR, now leads Lacombe by 43 points in the standings, 292-249. East York, ON’s Paul Penzo claimed his second straight Thunder pole with a time of 1:09.227 on his Ducati PS 1000 LE. Series leader in the twins class, Darren James qualified fourth on his Buell XB9R, and the North Vancouver rider takes a 25-point lead over Oliver Jervis, 271-246 into Sunday’s race. Jervis was second fastest in qualifying on his BMW RS1200. Dave Bagshaw of Kincardine, ON moved to within three points of series leader Paul Glenn of Keene, ON by claiming pole for the Suzuki SV650 National Cup race at 1:12.400. Saskatoon’s Brett McCormick was quickest in practice for the International Motorcycle SUPERSHOW Amateur 600 Sport Bike class aboard his Yamaha YZF-R6 with a time of 1:07.994. Dany Jourdain of St-Jean Richelieu, QC placed second on a Suzuki GSX-R600 and points leader Karl Daigle of Granby, QC was third riding his Honda CBR600RR. Qualifying for the Amateur 600 class is still scheduled for Saturday afternoon. Practice in the other classes will continue Saturday and races in all five national classes are set for Sunday. For more series information, visit www.cdnsuperbike.com Starting line-up for Sunday’s final round of the Parts Canada Superbike Championship at Shannonville Motorsport Park, showing starting position, rider name, hometown, type of motorcycle and qualifying time: 1.Matthew McBride, Mississauga, ON, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:04.900; 2. Pascal Picotte, St-Cecile Milton, QC, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:05.084; 3. Clint McBain, Cochrane, AB, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:05.166; 4. Kevin Lacombe, Granby, QC, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:05.294; 5. Francis Martin, Rock Forest, QC, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:05.300; 6. Andrew Nelson, Kars, ON, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:05.440; 7. Jordan Szoke, Brantford, ON, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:05.487; 8. Tom Kipp, Chardon, ON, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:06.055; 9. Jeff Williams, Harrowsmith, ON, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:06.820; 10. Erick Beausejour, Val Senneville, QC, Honda CBR1000RR, 1:07.296 11. Stephane Chabot, Oshawa, ON, Yamaha YZF-R6, 1:07.315; 12. Jean Paul Tache, North Bay, ON, Suzuki GSX-R1000, 1:07.504; 13. Frank Trombino, Kleinburg, ON, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:07.550; 14. Sean Heydorn, Aurora, ON, Honda CBR600RR, 1:08.125; 15. Larry Orde, Lakefield, ON, Yamaha YZF-R1, 1:08.245; 16. Jeremy Burgess, Hammonds Plains, NS, Kawasaki ZX-10R, 1:08.590; 17. Matthew Bushe, Castleton, ON, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:08.679; 18. Yoshihiro Hamaguchi, Yokkaichi-shi, Japan, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:08.946; 19. Todd Scott, Bedford, NS, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:09.437; 20. Zenon Nelson, Bowmanville, ON, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:09.554 21. Laurent Feuiltault, Mississauga, ON, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:09.746; 22. Jesse Sherstan, Stoney Plain, AB, Honda CBR600RR, 1:10.901; 23. Nicolas Audet, St-Henri, QC, Honda CBR600RR, 1:11.311; 24. Sylvain Grenier, Lasalle, QC, Suzuki GSX-R600, 1:14.418 More, from a press release issued by Pirelli: Pirelli Privateer Sets Shannonville Track Record During Friday qualifying for the Parts Canada Superbike Championship, privateer racer Matt McBride rode his Riders Choice Suzuki GSX-R1000 to an all-out track record at Shannonville Motorsport Park, on a set of Pirelli Diablo Superbike Slicks. Adding to this news of a new track record over those set by any other brand of tire is that McBride is a privateer; testament to the level, fair, playing field provided by spec tires equally available to all racers. This is the second over-all track record set during Pirelli’s first year as the spec-tire for the Parts Canada Superbike Championship. The Canadian championship is a seven-event series that visits six Canadian tracks. It was also McBride’s first pole position for the series’ premier class, Parts Canada Superbike. McBride set a time on the Shannonville ‘Pro’ track of 1:04.900, utterly shattering the previous record. Qualifying is usually conducted on Saturday but for this event it was moved up one day because of threatening weather from Ernesto.