Redding under the lap record in free practice to lead Bridewell as Showdown kicks off at Assen!
Scott Redding kicked off the Bennetts British Superbike Championship Showdown in style at Assen this afternoon, lapping 0.270s under the existing record to top the free practice times ahead of Title Fighter rival Tommy Bridewell at the end of the opening day.
Redding had set the benchmark in the morning’s session, but in the afternoon he set the fastest lap of the day in the closing ten minutes of free practice two to hold off an improving Bridewell on the Oxford Racing Ducati as the team prepare for their first attack on a Showdown.
The McAMS Yamaha charge was led by Jason O’Halloran in third place at the end of the first day of action, with his Title Fighter teammate Tarran Mackenzie holding 18th position after a challenging day on track and with work to do ahead of Datatag Qualifying tomorrow.
Luke Stapleford was fourth fastest on the Buildbase Suzuki ahead of Hector Barbera who completed the top five for the Quattro Plant – JG Speedfit Kawasaki team, taking advantage of his track knowledge from his time in Grand Prix racing to be the fastest of the Team Green contenders.
Dan Linfoot was sixth fastest for the Santander Salt TAG Yamaha team with Peter Hickman posting the seventh fastest time in the final stages of the session to be the third fastest of the Showdown contenders as the Showdown got underway.
Honda Racing’s Xavi Forés returned to familiar territory at Assen, posting the eighth fastest time ahead of Christian Iddon with championship leader Josh Brookes completing the top ten for Be Wiser Ducati and 0.038s ahead of Showdown rival Danny Buchan.
Bennetts British Superbike Championship, Assen, Free Practice 1 result:
Scott Redding (Be Wiser Ducati) 1m:36.685s
Xavi Forés (Honda Racing) +0.484s
Danny Buchan (FS3-Racing Kawasaki) +0.507s
Glenn Irwin (Quattro Plant – JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +0.613s
Josh Brookes (Be Wiser Ducati) +0.713s
Hector Barbera (Quattro Plant – JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +0.838s
Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Racing Ducati) +0.907s
Luke Stapleford (Buildbase Suzuki) +0.910s
Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW) +0.989s
Jason O’Halloran (McAMS Yamaha) +1.095s
Bennetts British Superbike Championship, Assen, Free Practice 2 result:
Scott Redding (Be Wiser Ducati)
Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Racing Ducati) 0.474s
Jason O’Halloran (McAMS Yamaha) +0.770s
Luke Stapleford (Buildbase Suzuki) +0.937s
Hector Barbera (Quattro Plant – JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +0.974s
Dan Linfoot (Santander Salt TAG Yamaha) +1.029s
Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) +1.060s
Xavi Forés (Honda Racing) +1.148s
Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW) +1.186s
Josh Brookes (Be Wiser Ducati) +1.224s
For more information on the Bennetts British Superbike Championship visit www.britishsuperbike.com
Scott Redding – Be Wiser Ducati
Fastest in free practice
“It has been a good start, coming to a track I know and that has been the biggest thing for me – going out and directly knowing exactly where I am going and which corners are coming up next! It has been one of my favorite tracks, even in World Championships and I feel generally comfortable.
“The pace seems quite fast. I am not fully comfortable with the bike to be honest and we had a small issue in FP1. FP2 we had to try and manage and I lost some time, and just used the same tyres to make a good race pace. After day one I am satisfied and I am looking to improve over the weekend.
“The good thing for me is I have never been in the Showdown before and so I am treating this like any other race weekend. There is not added extra pressure because it is the Showdown, it is no different and I know I have the pace to fight for wins. I am on a track I feel comfortable with so it does work a bit in my favour and I feel like I am ready to fight to be top of the Showdown.”