Mossey mugs Shakey for the top time in dramatic Brands Hatch Superpole

Luke Mossey will start from pole position for tomorrow’s opening MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship race at Brands Hatch after an intense Datatag Superpole session on the Grand Prix circuit where he went just 0.111s faster than Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne.

The opening session saw some of the leading contenders bidding to claw their way into Q2 and it wasn’t until the final minutes that riders including James Ellison and Michael Laverty were able to make the cut.

Q2 was equally nerve-wracking for some of the teams, with Ellison narrowly missing out in tenth place ahead of Michael Laverty, Peter Hickman and Christian Iddon as they jostled to make the final nine.

Tommy Bridewell was the first rider to exit the pitlane for his Superpole lap and the Bennetts Suzuki rider wasn’t taking any prisoners as he set the benchmark time of a 1m:25.707s. However his spell at the top was short lived as next to go for the one lap shootout was Mossey and the Quattro Plant Teccare Kawasaki rider moved to the top by 0.324s.

As Mossey and Bridewell anxiously watched to see whether they had done enough to hold on to a front row start, Lee Jackson completed his flying lap on the first of the Buildbase BMWs, holding third place.

Leon Haslam had put in a determined performance to move into the top nine for the first time this weekend in Datatag Qualifying and the JG Speedfit Kawasaki rider slotted into third place with his flying lap.

Next up for the hot lap was Richard Cooper and the Buildbase BMW rider was unable to get the upper hand and he held fifth place with four riders still to complete their lap.

Broc Parkes made his second appearance in Superpole and the ePayMe Yamaha rider stormed into third place after his flying lap with just three riders to go and Glenn Irwin headed out next to try and surpass the riders ahead of him. However the Be Wiser Ducati rider missed out and finished in fourth place, just 0.012s adrift of Parkes who continued to hold third position.

Jason O’Halloran was pushing to make it to the top of the times but as he bid to make up time in the final sector he crashed out on his flying lap unhurt and will start ninth on the grid.

That left just Byrne left to complete a lap and the Be Wiser Ducati rider was on a charge to try and claim the top spot at his home round however it wasn’t to be, the Kent contender missing out by 0.111s at the chequered flag. A jubilant Mossey was left celebrating his pole position with Byrne and Bridewell completing the final front row for tomorrow’s opening race.

MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship, Brands Hatch, Superpole result:

Luke Mossey (Quattro Plant Teccare Kawasaki) 1m:25.383s

Shane Byrne (Be Wiser Ducati) +0.111s

Tommy Bridewell (Bennetts Suzuki) +0.324s

Broc Parkes (ePayMe Yamaha) +0.402s

Glenn Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati) +0.414s

Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +0.510s

Lee Jackson (Buildbase BMW) +0.553s

Richard Cooper (Buildbase BMW) +0.556s

Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing)

For more information and the full rider schedule visit www.britishsuperbike.com

Luke Mossey

(Quattro Plant Teccare Kawasaki)

Datatag Superpole pole position rider

“It feels great to be on pole as yesterday I wasn’t happy with the bike at all. We had some problems and we couldn’t find the right setting and I felt like I was a little bit on the back foot, especially with a crash yesterday.

“We woke up this morning with a fresh head on and the boys have worked hard to cure the problem and I think that proves we have cured it now! I really didn’t expect to get the pole position, so to be sitting here in pole position makes me feel over the moon! I am looking forward now to two hard races tomorrow.”

More, from a press release issued by Be Wiser Ducati:

Front Row Start For History-Maker Byrne

Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne will line up in second place for tomorrow’s opening MCE British Superbike Championship race at Brands Hatch after a fine performance on the Be Wiser Ducati during this Shane Byrneafternoon’s Datatag Extreme Qualifying session.

Riding the factory-backed Ducati Panigale R, the four-times MCE BSB champion from nearby Sittingbourne, had dominated the free practice sessions, topping all three of them, and he signalled his intentions in this morning’s final session when he lapped inside the circuit lap record to create history with the fastest ever lap of 1m 24.838 around the Kent GP circuit.

With sunny conditions prevailing, Byrne posted the fastest time in both Q1 and Q2 to head into Superpole in confident mood for Paul Bird’s Penrith-based team. However, he wasn’t able to lap any quicker and his time of 1m 25.494 put him in second and 0.111s adrift of pole position man Luke Mossey, to deny him a third successive pole position.

Team-mate Glenn Irwin also had a highly successful day and, after running consistently in the top four during the three free practice sessions, the 26-year-old converted that form into an excellent starting position for tomorrow’s opening race. Strong performances in Q1 and Q2 sent the Carrickfergus rider through to the single lap Superpole for the first time this season and he didn’t disappoint with an excellent fifth place to start from row two of the grid.

Shane Byrne: “Having been quickest in all the sessions, I wanted to push the boat out a bit and produce something special in Superpole but I ended up making far too many mistakes. I got a really good run onto the start and finish straight to start the lap but then ran wide at Paddock Hill and then again at Druids. I told myself to keep calm as there was still plenty of time to pull the lost time back but then I ran wide at Surtees too. It wasn’t a great lap at all and I’m a bit disappointed but happy to be on the front row. The whole team’s worked so hard and I’ll try to get a good start and ride my own race tomorrow. It’s going to be difficult, though, as there are a few riders who look to have a similar pace and race wins don’t come easy!”

Glenn Irwin: “I hoped the podium at Thruxton two weeks ago would give me the confidence to go on a good run and right from free practice yesterday, we’ve been on the pace. Having my first experience Glenn Irwinof Superpole was quite weird as it’s strange being out on track on your own and it’s hard to know how to approach it. It was quite a messy lap as I had the odd slide here and there but I was still only 0.1s off the front row so that was really good for me. My race pace is good and I feel like we can run in the top five in the races whilst we’ve also progressed from session to session so I’m feeling good going into tomorrow.”

Phil Borley, Technical Director: “It’s been so far, so good this weekend and with the exception of a problem with an engine on Friday, which we soon rectified, everything’s gone well. There are a few mixed feelings after qualifying as Shakey’s been fastest in every session but he just didn’t quite string it all together on the single Superpole lap. At the same time, though, we’re very confident with our race pace so a front row start is the most important thing. Glenn has had his best qualifying performance of the year and he’s been quick in all sessions so we’re very hopeful for some strong results tomorrow.”

Datatag Extreme Qualifying

1 Luke Mossey (Kawasaki) 1m 25.383

2 Shane Byrne (Be Wiser Ducati) 1m 25.494

3 Tommy Bridewell (Suzuki) 1m 25.717

4 Broc Parkes (Yamaha) 1m 25.785

5 Glenn Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati) 1m 25.797

6 Leon Haslam (Kawasaki) 1m 25.893

For further information, please visit www.pbmuk.net and www.britishsuperbike.com.