Karl Harris dominated free practice ahead of the seventh round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship as it returned to Oulton Park for a second visit of the season. The Rob Mac Racing Yamaha rider was fastest in each of the two sessions, running with a best time of 1m 36.716secs, an average speed of 100.20mph around the 2.692 mile Cheshire circuit, as he outpaced the leading duo in the title chase by a little over a tenth of a second. “I’ve had enough bad luck and problems so far but after a strong result last time out, and now this, I’m determined to start my season for real here, so I’m really pleased and I’m going out there to enjoy myself,” said Harris who is chasing a first podium finish as the action moves into the second half of the campaign. Harris has a strong pedigree at the circuit and that could pose problems for series leader and former champion Shane Byrne who is hoping for a repeat of his winning double at the circuit back in May to further extend his 97 points advantage in the rankings over Cal Crutchlow. The Airwaves Ducati ride has been on the pace throughout in a fast moving duel with his nearest rival Crutchlow who finally put his HM Plant Honda just ahead on the practice leaderboard in the final stages of the afternoon session which was spoiled early on by light rain. Crutchlow, looking to avenge a tumble in the previous round here that contributed to him playing catch up in the title stakes put in a best lap of 1m 36.890secs while Byrne who sat out much of the second session, taking to the circuit to close in with a time of 1m 37.142secs. Leon Haslam, like his team-mate hoping for a strong showing to atone for an earlier problem at the circuit, set the fourth best time, just, ahead of the rider, Leon Camier, whom he trails in the standings. Tom Sykes, aboard the Rizla Suzuki, was marginally down on them, with the top six riders all within half a second of each other. James Ellison maintained his impressive form aboard the Hydrex Bike Animal Honda, running seventh, ahead of Michael Rutter, the North West 200 Ducati rider who took his first victory in three years in the previous round at Mallory Park. Atsushi Watanabe ran ninth from Lloyds British Jentin Racing Yamaha rider Simon Andrews who edged Billy McConnell out of the top ten by two tenths of a second. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki), Tristan Palmer on the Tena for Men Honda, Hawk Kawasaki’s Scott Smart and James Haydon, making his second appearance on the MSS Discovery Kawasaki, completed the top 15 runners. John Laverty, riding the Buildbase NW200 Ducati, the leader in the Daily Star Cup, ran fastest with a time of 1m 39.517secs, ahead of Gary Mason on the Quay Garage Honda with Chris Burns aboard the STP MV Agusta in close contention. Leading free practice times: 1. Karl Harris (Rob Mac Racing Yamaha) 1m:36.716s 2. Cal Crutchlow (HM Plant Honda) +0.174s 3. Shane Byrne (Airwaves Ducati) +0.426s 4. Leon Haslam (HM Plant Honda) +0.516s 5. Leon Camier (Airwaves Ducati) +0.552s 6. Tom Sykes (Rizla Suzuki) +0.598s 7. James Ellison (Hydrex Bike Animal Honda) +1.214s 8. Michael Rutter (North West 200 Ducati) +1.624s 9. Atsushi Watanabe (Rizla Suzuki) +1.736s 10. Simon Andrews (Lloyds British Yamaha) +1.748s More, from a press release issued by GSE Racing/Airwaves Ducati: AIRWAVES DUCATI KICK OFF ROUND 7 AT OULTON PARK The Airwaves Ducati team returned to Oulton Park today for Round 7 of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship. Both Airwaves Ducati riders continually improved their times during the day, posting their fastest laps during the second practice session. Shane Byrne’s fastest time of 1:37.142 secured him 3rd whilst Leon Camier’s best time of 1:37.268 resulted in a 5th place finish. Shane had been looking forward to coming back to the track where he secured his first double win of the 2008 season and used the days two practice sessions to build on what the team had learnt from their last visit to Oulton Park. “After achieving such great results the last time we were here, I felt happy with the settings I had so I started the day with those and went from there. The first session went pretty much as expected but I decided to sit out the first half of the second session because of the rain. Once the circuit had dried I had enough time to try a different rear Pirelli tyre on the Airwaves Ducati 1098R and improve my lap times from this morning. I’m confident that I could have gone faster still but I came across traffic towards the end of the session. I’m now really looking forward to the rest of the weekend and hopefully securing some more good results for the Airwaves Ducati team.” Leon also ended the day feeling positive about reducing his lap times further. “This morning’s session was good for us to get a feel for the recent changes we made to the settings on my Airwaves Ducati. It all felt really positive but I can still see where the potential lies for further improvements. It was a shame that it rained for the first part of the second practice session but I’m happy with my lap times and in particular how much quicker I am compared to when we were here in May; I’m feeling confident about the weekend ahead”. Qualifying for round 7 of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship commences at 14.00 tomorrow, Saturday July 19th 2008. More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service: Rizla Suzuki’s Atsushi Watanabe slashed 3.3 seconds off his lap time during today’s practice sessions for the seventh round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park in Cheshire, finishing ninth, as team mate Tom Sykes was a comfortable sixth. A dry morning session was followed by a damp start to the afternoon practice with the riders waiting in the garage for the picturesque 2.69-mile track to fully dry out. Double Japanese Superbike Champion Watanabe was fast and precise in the tricky conditions while Yorkshire ace Sykes saved his best to last as he worked through developments to his GSX-R1000. The single 50-minute qualifying session is at 1400-1450 on Saturday with race one at 1315 on Sunday and race two at 1630. Atsushi Watanabe: “I flew back from Japan on Wednesday and drove straight to Oulton Park. In the morning the track was a little damp and then dry and I remember how exciting a circuit this is. Apart from maybe needing a little more sleep I feel OK and in the afternoon, after speaking with Team Manager Jack-san, I pulled the pin off the grenade and went much faster… and this is good. “My Rizla Suzuki is feeling better. In the morning my rear is a problem but good technicians fixed and it was much stiffer and better in the afternoon. I try both my bikes and we improve handling and agility through the day. I ask for better brake stability feeling into some corners and know the team will provide me the answer. I am happy to be ninth and will be happier when I’m even higher up.” Tom Sykes: “It is the first day of practice so we worked our way up to speed. I tried a few tyres and we have a good option that I posted my fastest lap on right at the end after it had completed a full race distance – and while being held up by a slower rider. It was a little frustrating as I could have been a fair bit faster.” Practice Times: 1: Karl Harris (Yamaha) 1:36.716 2: Cal Crutchlow (Honda) +0.174 3: Shane Byrne (Ducati) +0.426 4: Leon Haslam (Honda) +0.516 5: Leon Camier (Ducati) +0.552 6: Tom Sykes (Rizla Suzuki) +0.598 7: James Ellison (Honda) +1.214 8: Michael Rutter (Ducati) _+1.624 9: Atsushi Watanabe (Rizla Suzuki) +1.736 10: Simon Andrews (Yamaha) +1.748.