Podium Joy for Shakey at Oulton 2007 Bennetts British Superbike Championship Round 4 Oulton Park, Cheshire Monday 7th May 2007 Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport rider Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne picked up his second podium of the season amidst changeable weather conditions in round four of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park today. Aboard the VK sponsored Honda Fireblade, the 30 year old Londoner followed up a sixth place finish in race one with a third place in the second race as the rain clouds threatened overhead. In the opening race Byrne was in the leading bunch and just missed out on a possible podium but made amends in the second race as he fended off Championship leader Gregorio Lavilla (Airwaves Ducati) for the final podium place on the last lap. Meanwhile rookie team mate Tom Sykes continued his impressive start to the campaign with another pair of solid points scoring rides at the Cheshire track. He too was only a fraction off a podium in the opening race, finishing in fifth, and briefly led race two until ending up in sixth place after another battling performance as he once again fended off a number of more illustrious rivals. As a result of the successful weekend Sykes lies in sixth position in the Championship, with Byrne in seventh going into the next round in two weeks time whereby Shakey is looking for his first win for the Paul Bird team and Sykes his first podium. Shane Byrne: “I’m a lot happier with that second race. In the first race the bike was good through the corners but not on the braking so we made some tweaks for race two and it was much better. I made hard work of passing Tommy Hill so it maybe could have been a second or a win. I’m looking forward to Snetterton now, its one place where you have to be brave on the brakes so if we have plenty of top speed there’s no reason why we can’t be up there again.” Tom Sykes: “It’s been a good weekend with more points and solid finishes and most of all I’ve gained a bit more experience. I got the holeshot in the second race which was quite nice and I had a little smile on my face. I was up there riding with the top riders who have so much more experience and I just didn’t quite have the pace of the front guys but it’s only my fourth Superbike race so I’m happy enough. The team have been superb and I think they are happy with my progress.” Paul Bird: “It’s been a fantastic day, both riders have done well and we are challenging for wins and in the thick of the action. Thanks to the boys for their hard work, and a big thanks to the sponsors also. We just need to improve each weekend now and we’re looking forward to Snetterton.” The next round of the Bennetts British Championship takes place next weekend at Snetterton, Norfolk in two weeks time (18th to 20th May). Race 1 Result 1, Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) 27m29.245s, 2, Leon Haslam (Ducati) +0.219s, 3, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) +0.504s, 4, Jonathan Rea (Honda) +1.843s, 5, Tom Sykes (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +2.113s, 6, Shane Byrne (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +2.505s, 7, Cal Crutchlow (Suzuki) +9.310s, 8, Leon Camier (Honda) +11.524s, 9, Karl Harris (Honda) +19.092s, 10, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +26.176s. Race 2 Result 1, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 27m33.097s, 2, Leon Haslam (Ducati) +2.177s, 3, Shane Byrne (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +3.563s, 4, Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) +4.041s, 5, Jonathan Rea (Honda) +7.403s, 6, Tom Sykes (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +7.664s, 7, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +7.786s, 8, Leon Camier (Honda) +13.860s, 9, Chris Walker (Suzuki) +31.363s, 10, Dean Thomas (Suzuki) +32.393s. More, from a press release issued by Suzuki Racing: SEASON BEST FOR CRUTCHLOW Rizla Suzuki’s Cal Crutchlow enjoyed the best ride of his Superbike career to date at the fourth round of the Bennetts British Championship at Oulton Park today taking a competitive seventh place in the opening race. Crutchlow, starting on the second row of the grid, was in contention with the leaders for much of the 17-lap race. He eventually matched his season’s best result of seventh but was crucially under 10 seconds behind the winner, demonstrating a marked improvement in his pace. In the second race he was in eighth when he was forced to retire on lap 12. Chris Walker, starting from 13th on the grid, crashed unhurt out of the opening race at the chicane. In the second race, at the 2.69-mile long Cheshire track, he finished ninth well ahead of his qualifying position. The first race was won by Ducati’s Gregorio Lavilla and the second by Honda’s Ryuichi Kiyonari. Rizla Suzuki will test at Mallory Park in Leicestershire this Friday, May 11th, before returning to race action at the fifth round of the Championship at Snetterton in Norfolk on May 20th. Cal Crutchlow: “I am absolutely delighted with my first race result of seventh. I was in touch with the leaders for most of the race and that shows a significant step forward in performance. I now know I can compete with the front runners, something which I hadn’t been able to do prior to this weekend. “In the second race we made a few changes to the bike that didn’t help and then I was forced to retire while comfortable in eighth place. Overall I feel as though I have moved up a level and will be taking that confidence with me into the rest of the season.” Chris Walker: “It has been a hard weekend. Right from the first session we were battling to find a competitive setting on my Rizla Suzuki that would allow me to compete. In the opening race I lost the front at the chicane and that was game over. In race two I ran on at the chicane and when I rejoined it was a lonely race to ninth. “The positives are that the GSX-R1000 is good and has all the ingredients to challenge for the podium – Cal and I have proved that. The test at Mallory Park later this week will help us and I think we can go to the next round confident we can improve on our results.” Simon Buckmaster – Team Manager: “Cal showed his maturity as a rider and a racer to score what is easily his best and most competitive result on a Superbike. He was unlucky in the second race when he was forced to retire but he can hold his head high given this was only his fourth BSB meeting. “Chris has not performed as we would have anticipated this weekend. Right from the start he struggled to find a comfortable setting on his bike and it showed in the races. In typical fashion though, he dug in and was unlucky with a crash in the opener before taking a top-10 finish in the second race. He will be very busy at our test at Mallory Park on Friday as he needs to find a better base setting to take to the next round.” Race One Result: 1: Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) 27:29.245, 2: Leon Haslam (Ducati) +0.219, 3: Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) +0.504, 4: Jonathan Rea (Honda) +1.843, 5: Tom Sykes (Honda) +2.113, 6: Shane Byrne (Honda) +2.505, 7: Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki) +9.310, 8: Leon Camier (Honda) +11.524, 9: Karl Harris (Honda) +19.092, 10: Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +26.176, DNF: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki). Race Two Result: 1: Kiyonari 27:33.097, 2: Haslam +2.177, 3: Byrne +3.563, 4: Lavilla +4.041, 5: Rea +7.403, 6: Sykes +7.664, 7: Hill +7.786, 8: Camier +13.860, 9: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki) +31.363, 10: Dean Thomas (Suzuki) +32.393. DNF Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki). Championship Positions (after four of 13 rounds): 1: Lavilla 169, 2: Kiyonari 140, 3: Rea 109, 4: Haslam 104, 5: Camier 96, 6: Sykes 80, 7: Byrne 71, 8: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki) 62, 9: Hill 52, 10: Michael Rutter (Kawasaki) 45. 12: Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki) 35.