MCE British Superbike Championship
Oulton Park, England
May 5, 2014
Race One Results (all on Pirelli tires):
1. Shane Byrne, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 18 laps, 30:15.190
2. Josh Brookes, Australia (Yam YZF-R1), -0.105 second
3. James Ellison, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -6.183 seconds
4. Tommy Bridewell, UK (Yam YZF-R1), -8.781
5. Stuart Easton, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -13.285
6. Dan Linfoot, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -19.139
7. Richard Cooper, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -19.226
8. James Westmoreland, UK (BMW S1000RR), -23.030
9. Jon Kirkham, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -23.878
10. Jakub Smrz, Czech Republic (Duc 1199 Panigale R), -25.509
23. Ryuichi Kiyonari, Japan (BMW S1000RR), -2 laps, DNF
24. John Hopkins, USA (Suz GSX-R1000), -4 laps, DNF
Race Two Results (all on Pirelli tires):
1. Josh Brookes, Australia (Yam YZF-R1), 18 laps, 28:50.237
2. Shane Byrne, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -0.118 second
3. James Ellison, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -4.892 seconds
4. Stuart Easton, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -11.841
5. Tommy Bridewell, UK (Yam YZF-R6), -14.145
6. James Westmoreland, UK (BMW S1000RR), -20.894
7. Dan Linfoot, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -21.606
8. Chris Walker, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -23.506
9. John Hopkins, USA (Suz GSX-R1000), -29.872
10. Jon Kirkham, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -30.862
24. Richard Cooper, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), -6 laps, DNF
27. Ryuichi Kiyonari, Japan (BMW S1000RR), -16 laps, DNF
Other Americans competing at Brands Hatch:
James Rispoli rode his Team Traction Control Suzuki GSX-R600 to ninth in the Motorpoint British Supersport 12-lap sprint race and to 12th in the Motorpoint British Supersport 16-lap feature race.
Jayson Uribe finished third overall and second in the Moto3 class in the Motul British Motostar race on his FPW Racing/R5R Honda.
Daniel Costilla, riding his Repli-Cast UK Honda, DNF the race Motul British Motostar race.
Danny Eslick did not compete in the Pirelli National Superstock 1000cc event at Oulton Park.
AMA Pro regular Ben Young, a resident of Canada, finished 33rd out of 40 starters in the 1000cc Superstock race on his Team WD-40 Kawasaki ZX-10R.
More, from a press release issued by MotorSport Vision Racing:
Round 2 Oulton Park 5 May
BROOKES BREAKS BYRNE’S WINNING STREAK WITH OULTON PARK VICTORY
Results
Race one:
1. Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki)
2. Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha) +0.105s
3. James Ellison (Lloyds British GBmoto Racing Kawasaki) +6.183s
4. Tommy Bridewell (Milwaukee Yamaha) +8.781s
5. Stuart Easton (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) +13.285s
6. Dan Linfoot (Quattro Plant Kawasaki) +19.139s
Race two:
1. Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha)
2. Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) +0.118s
3. James Ellison (Lloyds British GBmoto Racing Kawasaki) +4.892s
4. Stuart Easton (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) +11.841s
5. Tommy Bridewell (Milwaukee Yamaha) +14.145s
6. James Westmoreland (Buildbase BMW Motorrad) +20.894s
Championship standings:
1. Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) 95
2. Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha) 65
3. James Ellison (Lloyds British GBmoto Racing Kawasaki) 64
4. Stuart Easton (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) 44
5. Tommy Bridewell (Milwaukee Yamaha) 40
6. Chris Walker (Lloyds British GBmoto Racing Kawasaki) 39
Report
Milwaukee Yamaha’s Josh Brookes broke triple champion Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne’s run of winning form by claiming the victory in the second round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park.
The two riders had been inseparable throughout the weekend at the Cheshire circuit with Byrne adding to his winning tally in the opening race aboard his Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki, though under sustained pressure from Brookes in the closing stages.
Byrne made the break with Brookes ever close on the Mikwaukee Yamaha and then James Ellison aboard the Lloyds British GBmoto Kawasaki, before the Aussie re-established himself in second place, bettering the lap record set in 2006 to cross the line only 0.105s adrift of Byrne.
Byrne said: “The gap to Josh started coming down but I didn’t want to make a mistake, or let up at all or dangle a carrot to him and fortunately I did just enough to hold him off to win.”
Brookes had the pole start for the second race and he made the perfect get-away though Byrne was in close contention and on the second lap they swapped places twice in one corner, but Brookes maintained his position at the front. The Australian was coming under fire from the former champion but he held off Byrne twice as he made moves for the lead.
It was a first victory for Brookes by only 0.118s since joining the Milwaukee Yamaha team, and he said: “I don’t know when I last led a race from start to finish. Shakey came past early on and I had to fight back quickly as I didn’t want to let him go. I made a fairly daring move to get him back and then twice at Island Bends he came back at me, but I thought you will have to do better than that!”
Byrne settled for second but holds his lead in the overall standings ahead of the next round at Snetterton, he added: “That was a great race; the first one was about me, the second about Josh, but I can’t complain with a first and a second here.”
Ellison had continued his consistent run, having claimed third place finishes in each of the four races so far, he said: “I felt comfortable, felt I had the pace and am delighted to maintain my 100% podium finishing record.”
For more information please visit www.britishsuperbike.com
More, from a press release issued by Paul Bird Motorsport:
Byrne Victorious At Oulton Park To Extend Lead
The Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki Team continued their brilliant start to the 2014 MCE British Superbike Championship season at Oulton Park this Bank Holiday weekend with triple MCE BSB champion Shane Byrne taking his third win of the season.
Having taken a double victory at Brands Hatch over Easter, the 37-year-old Londoner was in confident mood going into round two and having set a time under the lap record in Sunday’s Datatag Extreme qualifying session, ‘Shakey’ grabbed the lead in the opening 18-lap race on lap one.
Despite a safety car period which closed the pack up, he pressed home his advantage aboard his Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki ZX-10R Ninja before being hauled in by rival Josh Brookes. However Byrne had the situation under control and crossed the line in front of the Australian to take his 54th MCE BSB career victory.
Hoping for more of the same in the second encounter around the picturesque 2.69-mile Cheshire circuit, Shakey had to play second fiddle to Brookes and although they were never more than a couple of machine lengths apart, he couldn’t manage an overtaking manoeuvre and duly crossed the line in second place. The results mean Byrne now leads the series by 30 points going into the next round at Snetterton next month.
Team-mate Stuart Easton continued to show fine form and he was consistently amongst the top six during free practice and qualifying, heading into the races in confident form. In the opening encounter, the 30-year-old Hawick rider immediately slotted into fourth place and he battled with Chris Walker, Dan Linfoot and Tommy Bridewell during the race, eventually crossing the line in a solid fifth place.
It was a similar story in the second 18-lap encounter as the reigning Motorpoint British Supersport champion established himself amongst the top five early on. Here he remained until the fifth lap when he moved up to fourth and, having successfully seen off the challenge of Bridewell, he was comfortable in the position for the remainder of the race, finishing over two seconds clear of his Yamaha rival to record his best result of the season so far aboard the Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki ZX-10R Ninja.
Shane Byrne: “I’m over the moon with first and second places on the Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki. The first race was all about me leading and the second likewise for Josh. It’s never easy being out front on your own but in the first race I found a good rhythm and was comfortable as I opened up a nice little gap. With four laps to go, the gap started to come down with Josh closing more and more with each lap but I just had enough of a margin to bring the bike home. In race two, Josh got the hole shot and led all the way and whilst there were a couple of places where I could get a good run on him and close up, I just couldn’t quite get close enough to make a pass.”
Stuart Easton: “It’s been a good weekend and a good start to the season and I’m more than satisfied with four, top six finishes from the first four races on my return to the MCE BSB series. It’s nice to have established myself in the top six straightaway and prove we’re going to be Showdown contenders so I just need to keep chipping away now and work on closing the gap to the leaders. As a racer you always want to be spraying the champagne so that’s my target for when the series resumes in June but I can now look forward to the North West 200 and getting back on to the roads. We’re all hoping for some good weather and if we get that, we’ll all have some great racing and some great craic.”
Paul Bird, Team Owner: “If anyone had offered me those results at the start of the weekend, I’d have snatched their hands off. Oulton Park has always been a very strong track for the Yamaha so for Shakey to win race one and come so close in race two was a fantastic achievement and to leave with a 30 point lead is a bonus. Stuart suffered from arm pump for much of the weekend so he could have been stronger but we will settle for him scoring important points to claim fourth in the table. It’s job done as far as I’m concerned and the team has done a great job.”