The Rizla Suzuki team had a dramatic qualifying session today at Thruxton in Hampshire for the rescheduled opening round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship with Atsushi Watanabe finishing in 11th and Tom Sykes in 12th. Wet and blustery weather made conditions difficult on the 2.4 mile high speed track, but the Rizla Suzuki racers worked steadily at reducing their lap times throughout free practice. During the damp 50-minute qualifying session, Sykes crashed at Noble corner without injury. “The session started out OK but I decided to try a harder rear tyre which didn’t feel great,” explained Sykes. “I got a clear run out to the back of the circuit and was in fourth gear when the rear let go. It took up a lot of the session trying to get back out again on my number two machine. “The third row of the grid is not where I had expected to be but it is a long race and I’m going out there tomorrow to bag as many points as possible,” he concluded. Watanabe worked hard learning the high speed circuit and was aiming for a top 10 qualifying. He said: “This is my first time on Pirelli tyres in wet conditions and on a UK circuit in rain. I wanted a better position but on my last try for a fast lap there were many slow riders. Lots of different conditions on the track too – some drying lines and some wet lines. I’m still learning but I think I can go faster tomorrow.” Jack Valentine, Team Manager commented: “I had a chat with Atsushi after free practice and we agreed he was aiming for a top 10 so I’m really pleased that he was moving up the order and qualified 11th. He is still adapting to the faster parts of the track but on the slower sections he is able to stick with the BSB regulars. “As for Tom he was in contention for the front row of the grid until he tried a harder rear and that is when the bike came round on him, he high sided losing a lot of time. He went back out on his second bike but by the time he got up to speed he had a lot of traffic to contend with. A good start tomorrow and I’m confident he can still run at the front.” Pole position was set by Ducati’s Shane Byrne with a time of 1:19.704. The race action kicks off tomorrow at 1300 followed by race two at 1530. This will be the first British Superbike race of 2008 since round one of the championship at Brands Hatch was cancelled due to heavy snow. Qualifying Results: 1: Shane Byrne (Ducati) 1:19.704 2: Leon Haslam (Honda) +0.168 3: Michael Rutter (Ducati) +0.245 4: Cal Crutchlow (Honda) +0.322 5: Karl Harris (Yamaha) +0.668 6: Leon Camier (Ducati) +0.787 7: Adam Jenkinson (Honda) +1.138 8: Michael Laverty (Suzuki) +1.154 9: John Laverty (Ducati) +1.501 10: Sean Emmett (Yamaha) +1.652 11: Atsushi Watanabe (Rizla Suzuki) +1.674 12: Tom Sykes (Rizla Suzuki) +1.694 More, from a press release issued by Hydrex Bike Animal Honda: ROW FOUR FOR ELLISON AT DAMP THRUXTON For the second meeting in succession the weather played a vital part in qualifying for round two of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Thruxton in Hampshire today. After the weather-affected first round at Brands Hatch two weeks ago, everyone was hoping for dry conditions but yesterday’s cool and blustery weather gave way to showers and heavy rain, none more so than just before the important fifty-minute qualifying session this afternoon. With some radical changes and alterations to both of the HRC-backed Hydrex Bike Animal Honda Fireblades, riders James Ellison and Guy Martin were hopeful going into the session but at the end, just as the track dried up, Ellison’s best time put him on row four of the grid with Martin joining him one row further back. However, with drier and warmer conditions hopefully forecast for tomorrow, the team is hopeful of a good result in both twenty-lap races. James Ellison: “It’s turning into a difficult weekend again. We’re still trying to find a good setting and I’m not comfortable on the bike just yet but we’re not too far away. It’s a fast pace out there so we need to be on the money to get some good results. I’m hoping for a dry race tomorrow as we’ve still got a lot of work to do with the settings, but we’re getting there.” Guy Martin: “I’m still struggling with the front end and I’ve got not a lot of confidence in the bike at the moment, especially in the wet. We’re trying to get a better feeling in the forks but we can’t do anything drastic. We missed the first session on Friday due to a misfire but good things come to those who wait and it will come.” Shaun Muir (Team Owner): “James has had some problems with the new front forks which we are in the process of sorting. He wants the confidence to push harder on the front but we’ve had problems developing the PI system so we’ve had to shelve that and run the bikes on the HRC kit parts. I would have liked him to be on the second or third row but we’ve got a good base setting to start the race. If the conditions are fair, I think James should get a couple of top eight positions. Guy has a vague feeling from the front that he needs to iron out and needs to get his confidence up in the next two events in readiness for the roads. I think it was the right decision to run with the Fireblades on the roads events and it is looking positive.” Race one gets underway at 1.00pm on Sunday, with race two at 3.30pm. Qualifying 1, Shane Byrne (Ducati) 1m19.704s, 2, Leon Haslam (Honda) 1m19.872s, 3, Michael Rutter (Ducati) 1m19.949s, 4, Cal Crutchlow (Honda) 1m20.026s, 5, Karl Harris (Yamaha) 1m20.372s, 6, Leon Camier (Ducati) 1m20.491s, 7, Adam Jenkinson (Honda) 1m20.842s, 8, Michael Laverty (Suzuki) 1m20.858s, 9, John Laverty (Ducati) 1m21.205s.. 15, James Ellison (Hydrex Bike Animal Honda) 1m22.056s. 19, Guy Martin (Hydrex Bike Animal Honda) 1m23.194s. More, from a press release issued by British Superbike Championship Press Office: Byrne beats wind and rain for pole Bennetts British Superbike Championship Round Two Saturday/Sunday 19/20 April Thruxton Shane Byrne left it late to secure his second successive pole start in this year’s Bennetts British Superbike Championship and the former title winner admitted that a late gamble of tyre choice had been crucial to him bettering the time of his rival Leon Haslam. Rain earlier in the afternoon, coupled with a strong wind, combined to make conditions difficult at Thruxton and with less than four minutes remaining it seemed that Haslam, with a lap of 1m 19.872secs, had done enough to put his HM Plant Honda on top of the leaderboard. Byrne, encouraged by his team took up the challenge and won the Swan Comb 50 Roll for Pole: “It was their decision that we should give it a go, and we used a ‘soft’ wet tyre it was a last minute gamble and we put it all on the line. It was quite tricky out there and I am both really surprised and delighted to take pole. “I had pole for Brands Hatch but didn’t have the chance to race there because of the snow so it will be good to race here,” added the 31 year old who took a winning double at this Hampshire circuit during his 2003 title winning term. “A repeat of that would be really good.” He powered in a time of 1m 19.704secs, an average speed of 106.41mph, to underline his credentials for a victory bid. Michael Rutter, also riding a Ducati 1098R, in NorthWest 200 colours, claimed his first front row start in two years with a lap of 1m 19.949secs: “It’s good for us, a new team with a new bike and a lot of learning to do. It is a dream to be back on the front row after so long and I am really happy.” The front row was completed by Cal Crutchlow aboard the second HM Plant Honda with Karl Harris, riding the lone Rob Mac Racing Yamaha, edged back into a fifth place, a third of a second down. Leon Camier, Airwaves Ducati; Adam Jenkinson aboard the SMT Honda and Relentless Suzuki’s Michael Laverty completed the second row. The Ulsterman’s brother John, ran ninth best, and the fastest of the independent riders, battling for the Daily Star Cup. He put in a lap of 1m 21.205secs to be ahead of AIM Yamaha rider Sean Emmett and the Rizla Suzuki duo of Atsushi Watanabe and Tom Sykes, who escaped with a bruising after high-siding off midway through the session. Chris Burns, riding the STP MV Agusta, running five places and six tenths of a second down on John Laverty, was the second best Cup runner, with Tom Tunstall third up on the Hardinge/Ice Valley Honda.