Rizla Suzuki racer Cal Crutchlow gave it his all to take seventh place on the second row of the grid for tomorrow’s eighth round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park in Cheshire. Crutchlow tried both his Rizla Suzukis during the warm and dry qualification session as he sought final direction for a race set-up. He settled on one bike and with his only qualifying tyre he left it until the dying seconds to secure a second row start for the double-header races at the 2.69-mile long picturesque but challenging track. Rizla Suzuki’s Chris Walker competed at the top of the time sheets early in the session but ended up 11th. He also rode both his Rizla Suzukis in qualification and has now settled on a set-up that utilises the strengths of both bikes. Honda’s Jonathan Rea took pole position. Due to noise restrictions, racing at the eighth round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship starts slightly later than normal, with the premier class taking to the track at 1350 on Sunday, July 15th. Cal Crutchlow: “We had quite a bit of work to get through during qualification and ended up making a choice on the best race tyre and best bike for the races just before I had my single chance to go quick on a qualifying tyre. “Seventh is a decent starting point and it gives me the chance to run with the front guys if I get away well. There’s a slight feeling of instability through the corners that I have asked my technicians to investigate and if they can fix it then I think I have a chance.” Chris Walker: “After the positives of Knockhill I am a little frustrated to find myself back in 11th. Early in the session I moved from my number one bike to the spare and that didn’t help as it wasn’t handling as well as I would have liked. “For the races we will take the best parts of both my bikes and bring them together in one package. If I can get a sensible start then I think the top six is not an unreasonable target – maybe it could even be better, we will have to see.” Simon Buckmaster – Team Manager: “Cal deserved a second row grid position after the amount of effort and commitment he put in to reduce his lap times. His crew has been focussed this weekend and the result is Cal’s race pace is as competitive as it’s ever been and hopefully that will translate to two good finishes. “Chris put in the same gargantuan effort as Cal and certainly deserved a better starting position – and but for a little bad luck and timing, would have achieved it. If you add his sector times together, his ideal lap is well over half a second less than the one he actually recorded, so we remain positive he can score well in the races. “As seems the norm this summer, the weather could yet play a big factor in the races tomorrow. Wet or dry, Rizla Suzuki remains determined to get as high up the results sheets as possible.” Qualification Times: 1: Jonathan Rea (Honda) 1:34.914 2: Tom Sykes (Honda) +0.358 3: Leon Haslam (Ducati) +0.615 4: Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) +0.689 5: Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) +0.746 6: Karl Harris (Honda) +1.144 7: Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki) +1.288 8: Shane Byrne (Honda) +1.472 9: Leon Camier (Honda) +1.571 10: Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +1.849 11: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki) +2.162. More, from a press release issued by Stobart Motorsport: Second Place Start for Sykes 2007 Bennetts British Superbike Championship Rounds 15 & 16 Oulton Park, Cheshire Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport rider Tom Sykes recorded his best qualifying position of the season when he just missed out on pole in today’s qualifying session for round eight of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park meaning he will start from second place on the grid. Riding the VK backed Dunlop shod Honda Fireblade, the 21 year old Yorkshireman held provisional pole for much of the 50 minute session and was looking good to claim the team’s second pole position of the season but was edged out in the closing stages by the on-form Jonathan Rea. Nevertheless the performance bodes well for the Superbike rookie who just missed out on a podium position last time out at Knockhill and is aiming to rectify that situation this weekend. Meanwhile for team mate Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne, the session proved problematic when he slid off his machine early in the session. The 30 year old Londoner returned to the garage and took out his spare machine but an electrical problem meant he had to sit out much of the session as his number one bike was repaired. With a couple of quick laps late in the session, Byrne managed to post eighth fastest time and as a result will start from the second row of the grid in tomorrow’s two 17-lap races. Tom Sykes: “I’m happy enough with that and I felt quite comfortable. I went back out on the last qualifier and thought I could get into the 1m34’s but I struggled on the first flying lap with traffic and when I got a clear track at the end, the chequered flag came out. It’s another front row start and we’ve got a good race set up for tomorrow whether it’s wet or dry, although I hope it’s dry. “ Shane Byrne: “I have one bike working really well and one bike which is good, but not quite as good as the other but I keep crashing the better one! I managed five laps in the session this morning and just three laps in qualifying before I crashed. The bike was working mega this morning. In qualifying I went back out on the number two bike but had a problem with that so I had to wait for the boys to fix the number one machine and all credit to them. After the day we’ve endured, to end up on the second row is not ideal, but at least it’s something and thanks to the team. Paul Bird: “It was an action packed qualifying session that’s for sure! It was brilliant for Tom but Shakey hasn’t had much luck, although hopefully he’s got all his bad luck out of the way now. Both of them have got a good race set up so we hope to be up at the front tomorrow.” The first of the Bennetts British Superbike races gets underway at 13.50 with the second one screened live on ITV1 at 16.10. Qualifying: 1, Jonathan Rea (Honda) 1m34.914s, 2, Tom Sykes (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) 1m35.272s, 3, Leon Haslam (Ducati) 1m35.529s, 4, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 1m35.603s, 5, Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) 1m35.660s, 6, Karl Harris (Honda) 1m36.058s, 7, Cal Crutchlow (Suzuki) 1m36.202s, 8, Shane Byrne (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) 1m36.386s, 9, Leon Camier (Honda) 1m36.485s, 10, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) 1m36.763s.