MCE British Superbike Championship
Brands Hatch Circuit, England
July 18, 2015
Qualifying Results (all on Pirelli tires):
From Qualifying Session Three:
1. Shane Byrne, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:25.331
2. Josh Brookes, Australia (Yam YZF-R1), 1:25.332
3. Michael Laverty, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:25.716
4. Richard Cooper, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:25.869
5. Stuart Easton, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:25.948
6. James Ellison, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:25.982
7. Broc Parkes, Australia (Yam YZF-R1), 1:26.138
8. Ryuichi Kiyonari, Japan (BMW S1000RR), 1:26.148
9. John Hopkins, USA (Duc Panigale R), 1:26.179
10. Luke Mossey, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:26.234
From Qualifying Session Two:
11. Tommy Bridewell, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:26.237
12. Jason O’Halloran, Australia (Hon CBR1000RR), 1:26.256
13. Christian Iddon, UK (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:26.291
14. James Westmoreland, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:26.380
15. Peter Hickman, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:26.468
16. Lee Jackson, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:26.518
17. Chris Walker, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:26.658
18. Jack Kennedy, Ireland (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:26.665
19. Danny Buchan, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:26.867
20. Howie Mainwaring Smart, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:27.342
From Qualifying Session One:
21. Martin Jessopp, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:26.861
22. Michael Rutter, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:26.885
23. Dan Linfoot, UK (Hon CBR1000RR), 1:26.933
24. Billy McConnell, Australia (BMW S1000RR), 1:27.082
25. Josh Waters, Australia (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:27.248
26. Filip Backlund, Sweden (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:27.781
27. Taylor Mackenzie, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:28.045
28. Joe Burns, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:28.074
29. Jed Metcher, Australia (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:28.242
30. Lee Costello, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:28.769
American James Rispoli qualified fourth in British Supersport with a lap time of 1:28.639 on his Team Traction Control Yamaha YZF-R6. Rispoli then finished fourth in the 12-lap Supersport Race One, which was won by Luke Stapleford on a Triumph.
American Brandon Paasch qualified sixth with a lap time of 1:41.958 in Moriwaki Junior Cup, which is run on spec Moriwaki MD250H motorcycles. Paasch then finished seventh in 12-lap Race One, which was won by Leon Orgis.
More, from a press release issued by MotorSport Vision:
Shakey snatches pole position by just 0.001s from Brookes at Brands Hatch
Results
Datatag Extreme Qualifying:
1: Shane Byrne (PBM Kawasaki) 1m:25.331s
2: Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha) +0.001s
3: Michael Laverty (Tyco BMW) +0.385s
4: Richard Cooper (Anvil Hire TAG Kawasaki) +0.538s
5: Stuart Easton (PBM Kawasaki) +0.617s
6: James Ellison (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +0.651s
Report
Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne snatched the pole position by just 0.001s from fierce title rival Josh Brookes in an incredibly close Datatag Extreme qualifying session on the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit ahead of the sixth round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship.
Milwaukee Yamaha’s Brookes had been instantly fast out of the blocks, firing in a time immediately inside the lap record of the Kent circuit on his first flying lap. The Australian was pushing hard but Byrne retaliated and he edged ahead on the PBM Kawasaki as the closing minutes ticked down.
Brookes was not prepared to be outdone without a fight and he made a hard-charging last gasp effort to reclaim the top position, crossing the line agonisingly close as the pair were separated by just 0.001s, but the four-time title winner held the position.
Michael Laverty, who last Sunday raced in the German round of MotoGP, completes the front row of the grid on his Tyco BMW, running only 0.385s adrift of Byrne to claim his best qualifying performance in three years.
Richard Cooper aboard the Anvil Hire TAG Kawasaki heads the second row in fourth as he achieved his best qualifying performance of his season, edging out Stuart Easton on the second PBM Kawasaki and James Ellison on the JG Speedfit Kawasaki.
Broc Parkes was another rider to up his game this weekend with his best qualifying of the season in seventh on the Milwaukee Yamaha, ahead of the former three times title winner Ryuichi Kiyonari on the Buildbase BMW. John Hopkins on his return to the series with the Lloyds British Moto Rapido Ducati team was ninth after an impressive start whilst Luke Mossey on the Quattro Plant Kawasaki completed the top ten qualifiers who are separated by a 0.903s margin.
For more information visit www.britishsuperbike.com
Shane Byrne (PBM Kawasaki)
“I’m happy to be pole position, but we always, always, always aim just to be on the front row. We’ve worked hard this weekend on the race package and try to be consistent on lots of laps, that’s going to be a key factor and something we’re still chipping away at.
“On my lap time that got pole I had a bit of a moment coming out of Sheene Curve – I flicked my feet of the pegs just a tiny bit and got me all a bit in a tangle. I just about missed the apex at Stirlings and didn’t get the best of runs out of there. The last sector has been good for the bike this weekend and to lose that little bit was a bit disappointing, so I thought right, if that could be a 1m25.3s, then for sure I could go faster but I pushed the envelope just a little bit too much into Paddock Hill the following lap and went a tiny bit wide and thought okay, abort, abort – cool down and then we’ll go again.
“I did another really good lap time but it was just a tenth off what I’d already done before and fortunately, there was plus 0.001s, but it was pole, it doesn’t really mean a great deal. There are no prizes for pole position; it just gives us a good start for tomorrow. Hopefully we’re going to have two great races and there will be a big crowd here and we’ll see what we’ve got tomorrow.”