MCE British Superbike Championship
Oulton Park, England
September 4, 2015
Free Practice Two Results (all on Pirelli tires):
1. John Hopkins, USA (Ducati), 1:35.092
2. Josh Brookes, Australia (Yamaha), 1:35.146
3. Shane Byrne, UK (Kawasaki), 1:35.295
4. Danny Buchan, UK (Kawasaki), 1:35.471
5. Christian Iddon, UK (Suzuki), 1:35.699
6. Luke Mossey, UK (Kawasaki), 1:35.731
7. Michael Laverty, UK (BMW), 1:35.757
8. Jack Kennedy, Ireland (Kawasaki), 1:35.916
9. Peter Hickman, UK (BMW), 1:35.967
10. Richard Cooper, UK (BMW), 1:35.991
11. Tommy Bridewell, UK (BMW), 1:36.020
12. Stuart Easton, UK (Kawasaki), 1:36.063
13. James Ellison, UK (Kawasaki), 1:36.072
14. Lee Jackson, UK (BMW), 1:36.121
15. Chris Walker, UK (Kawasaki), 1:36.272
16. Billy McConnell, Australia (BMW), 1:36.275
17. Josh Waters, Australia (Suzuki), 1:36.468
18. Ryuichi Kiyonari, Japan (BMW), 1:36.703
19. James Westmoreland, UK (Kawasaki), 1:36.718
20. Dan Linfoot, UK (Honda), 1:36.754
21. Martin Jessopp, UK (BMW), 1:36.986
22. Filip Backlund, Sweden (Kawasaki), 1:37.216
23. Howie Mainwaring Smart, UK (Kawasaki), 1:37.846
24. Taylor Mackenzie, UK (Kawasaki), 1:38.068
25. Julien Da Costa, France (Honda), 1:38.149
26. Shaun Winfield, UK (Kawasaki), 1:38.252
27. Jenny Tinmouth, UK (Honda), 1:38.934
28. John Ingram, UK (Kawasaki), 1:39.374
29. Aaron Zanotti, UK (Yamaha), 1:39.552
30. Jed Metcher, Australia (Kawasaki), 1:39.719
31. Rhalf Lo Turco, Brazil (Kawasaki), 1:41.464
American James Rispoli, riding his Team Traction Control Yamaha YZF-R6, moved up from sixth in the opening British Supersport practice to fourth in the second practice session. Rispoli lowered his best lap time from 1:40.705 to 1:38.565. Luke Stapleford did a 1:37.700 on his Triumph to lead Free Practice Two.
More, from a press release issued by MotorSport Vision Racing:
American Hopkins steals the show in free practice at Oulton Park
Results
Free practice one:
1: Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha) 1m:35.556s
2: Shane Byrne (PBM Kawasaki) +0.023s
3: Tommy Bridewell (Tyco BMW) +0.268s
4: Danny Buchan (Be Wiser Kawasaki) +0.549s
5: Luke Mossey (Quattro Plant Kawasaki) +0.633s
6: Christian Iddon (Bennetts Suzuki) +0.844s
Free practice two:
1: John Hopkins (Lloyds British Moto Rapido Ducati) 1m:35.092s
2: Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha) +0.054s
3: Shane Byrne (PBM Kawasaki) +0.203s
4: Danny Buchan (Be Wiser Kawasaki) +0.379s
5: Christian Iddon (Bennetts Suzuki) +0.607s
6: Luke Mossey (Quattro Plant Kawasaki) +0.639s
Report
American John Hopkins upstaged the title-chasing pair of Josh Brookes and Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne in the dying moments of free practice two, topping the times ahead of the triple-header ninth round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park.
The former MotoGP and MCE BSB runner-up stormed to his fastest lap of the day on the Lloyds British Moto Rapido Ducati to close in on the lap record time ahead of the opening race which takes place at the Cheshire circuit following Datatag Qualifying tomorrow (Saturday).
Hopkins, who claimed his first ever victory in the series at the circuit back in 2011, is poised for more of the same and that could spell problems for both Brookes and Byrne who are aiming for the maximum Podium Points haul ahead of the Showdown opener at Assen.
This round is crucial to the championship aspirations of the chasing pack who are all aiming to join Brookes and Byrne as Title Fighters in the final Showdown. Outsider Luke Mossey on the Quattro Plant Kawasaki set the sixth best time, just adrift of Danny Buchan and Christian Iddon.
The Tyco BMW pairing of Michael Laverty and Tommy Bridewell, who both currently hold places in the top six, were seventh and eighth respectively on combined free practice times and will be pushing to close the deficit ahead of Datatag Qualifying and the first race tomorrow.
Today’s sessions marked the comeback of both Stuart Easton and James Ellison who both return from injury. PBM Kawasaki’s Easton currently holds fifth place in the overall standings and just six weeks after his Brands Hatch injury valiantly set the 12th fastest time, just 0.009s separating him from the JG Speedfit Kawasaki rider who also is battling for a Showdown spot.
It was a disastrous opening day for the Honda Racing team as Dan Linfoot bids to make the cut for the Showdown; he currently holds seventh place in the overall standings but could only set the 20th fastest time.
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John Hopkins (Lloyds British MotoRapido Ducati)
P1: 1m 35.092s
“I had no idea of my time as I did not have the GPS switched on and during that lap I made a few little mistakes so I thought it was slower than that! We had run with used tyres earlier as we worked on the bike, then put in a new one for the afternoon, and that with the adjustments to the suspension made a big change to my lap times.
“The bike feels great, the boys in the team have worked very hard and I am great and up for the three races. I had my first win here back in 2011 so this is a pretty special track for me and I want to be fighting for the podium.”
More, from a press release issued by Milwaukee Yamaha:
MILWAUKEE YAMAHA BUILDING FOR RACE ONE AT OULTON PARK
Milwaukee Yamaha’s Josh Brookes is gearing up for the opening MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship race of the triple-header weekend at Oulton Park tomorrow (Saturday), setting the second fastest time during free practice at the Cheshire circuit.
Brookes topped the opening session of the weekend, improving his pace throughout the day to remain ahead of his closest title rival Shane Byrne, however he was denied the top position in the final seconds by John Hopkins and a margin of just 0.054s.
Josh Brookes
“I haven’t thought about the race tomorrow yet, I have just been focused on today. This morning was good and we just rode on one tyre the whole session through and maintained the fastest lap time and did the best lap at the end of the session.
“This afternoon wasn’t so good although we went faster but I wasn’t happy with the gearing and we made some changes to make it right and then the set-up wasn’t matched to the wheel base with the different gearing so we changed it again. Everything then started going outside the window of what works so we are going to have a little rethink for tomorrow and then come back.
“We just have to alter the suspension settings as I didn’t feel comfortable and have confidence after the changes, but we will fix that for tomorrow.”