From a press release issued by Team Suzuki:

RIZLA SUZUKI ON FRONT ROW

One of the closest qualifying sessions in recent years left Rizla Suzuki’s John Reynolds and Gregorio Lavilla fourth and seventh for tomorrow’s sixth round of the British Superbike Championship at Thruxton, with both riders less than a quarter of a second off pole position.

Championship leader JR’s front row fourth was a meagre 0.160 seconds behind Ducati’s Dean Thomas on pole position. Team Suzuki factory MotoGP test rider Lavilla – standing in for regular Rizla Suzuki rider Yukio Kagayama who is recuperating from injury in Japan – was a quarter of a second behind the leader.

Thruxton in Hampshire is the home circuit for the Rizla Suzuki team, which is based out of the Crescent Performance Centre in nearby Verwood, Dorset. With the fastest average lap speed of any circuit in the UK at 112mph, it is well-known for producing close-fought racing right down to the last lap, and with qualifying being so tight, a fierce on-track battle is expected tomorrow.

Rizla Suzuki will dedicate its racing endeavours this weekend to Davy Wood, the well-respected race guru from Northern Ireland who sadly passed away last week.

John Reynolds:

“My final qualifying lap was good but I was held up at the chicane and that might have cost me a tenth or two. But I am on the front row and that’s a decent result given how competitive qualifying has been today. To be less than two tenths behind the pole and only be in fourth suggests that it is going to be a proper dogfight in the races tomorrow. I like that. Let’s get it on.

“I couldn’t be happier with my Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000. It is handling just the way I want it to; the engine is strong and we have a tyre that is consistent over race distance. It’ll be tough, but I will be settling for nothing less than wins tomorrow.”

Gregorio Lavilla:

“I must thank my team technicians and John Reynolds for their help today. My team has worked extremely hard to give me a bike that handles and stops as well as any other bike on the track. On top of that, JR allowed me to follow him for a lap and that was when I made my best time.

“When following John, I found the lap time was easy to make as I could use him as my braking and turning marker. That is to be expected as I am still learning this track. It is also good for me because if I can get away with the leaders tomorrow, I think I will be able to stay with them and hopefully make an impression at the end of the race. My bike brakes very well and into the last corner will be good at overtaking.”

Niall Mackenzie – team test rider:

“What a qualifying session! That was close and exciting to watch. To finish a quarter of a second behind pole and only be seventh beggars belief but is a brilliant result for Gregorio on his first visit to this circuit and as a rider for Rizla Suzuki.

“JR was held up on his last fast lap when he might have nicked pole, but to be honest, it hardly matters. The racing around here is always very competitive and it won’t surprise me if there are seven or eight riders still in contention come the last lap in both races. Then it’s down to who wants it the most and if that’s the case, then we all know nobody wants it more than JR. I think the fans are in for a treat tomorrow as the racing is going to be awesome.”

Qualifying Times: 1: Dean Thomas (Ducati) 1:15.592, 2: Sean Emmett (Ducati) +0.086, 3: Michael Rutter (Honda) +0.087, 4: JOHN REYNOLDS (RIZLA SUZUKI) +0.160, 5: Glen Richards (Kawasaki) +0.178, 6: Scott Smart (Kawasaki) +0.201, 7: GREGORIO LAVILLA (RIZLA SUZUKI) +0.250, 8: James Haydon (Yamaha) +0.817, 9: Gary Mason (Yamaha) +0.976, 10: James Ellison (Yamaha) +1.069.


More, from a press release issued by MSS Discovery Kawasaki:

MSS DISCOVERY’S RIBA PUTS ZX-6RR ON FRONT ROW FOR THRUXTON BATTLE

MSS Discovery team ace Pere Riba will start from the front row of the grid in Sunday’s sixth round of the British Supersport Championship at Thruxton, Hants aboard his Kawasaki ZX-6RR.

The Spanish rider ­ on his first visit to the 2.4-mile Thruxton track ­ recorded his fastest qualifying lap in Saturday morning’s opening session and is in confident mood for Sunday’s 20-lap race.

“Yesterday’s free practice was a struggle but we’ve worked hard overnight and the machine was fantastic today,” said Riba. “In today’s final qualifying session we ran out of time to record a fast qualifying lap but getting the ZX-6RR in perfect shape for the race was our priority.”

“Thruxton is a really wide circuit so it’s been a little difficult choosing the correct line through some of the corners but I’ve got no worries about a good race pace,” added Riba who finished just 0.4s adrift of pole position.

The MSS Discovery team’s guest rider for Thruxton, journalist Gus Scott, was 23rd fastest and starts from the sixth row of the grid.

“The pace is incredible,” reported Scott. “I’m having a ball on the ZX-6RR though, and the team’s great to work with. I’ll be happy if I can edge into the top 15 and grab a point in tomorrow’s race.”

A frustrated Steve Allan qualified in 13th place for round five of the National Superstock Championship but the gritty Scotsman is confident of challenging for honours on Sunday aboard the MSS Discovery ZX-10R.

“We’ve been struggling in practice but in some ways it’s been worth it,” Allan explained. “We know what the problem is and are confident that a couple of changes to the front forks will sort out the problem for the race tomorrow.”

British Supersport Championship final qualifying times:

1 Karl Harris, Honda, 1:17.614
2 Matt Llewellyn, Ducati, 1:17.877
3 Simon Andrews, Yamaha, 1:17.975
4 Pere Riba, MSS Discovery Kawasaki, 1:18.088
5 Michael Laverty, Ducati, 1:18.115
6 Craig Jones, Triumph, 1:18.124
7 Luke Quigley, Suzuki, 1:18.251
8 Paul Young, Honda, 1:18.256
9 Leon Camier, Honda, 1:18.378
10 Tom Sykes, Suzuki, 1:18.468

23 Gus Scott, MSS Discovery Kawasaki, 1:19.731


National Superstock Championship final qualifying times:

1 Danny Beaumont, Yamaha 1:18.318
2 Andy Tinsley, Suzuki 1:18.560
3 Mark Heckles, Yamaha 1:18.620
4 Dave Johnson, Yamaha 1:18.626
5 John Laverty, Yamaha, 1:18.912
6 John Crockford, Suzuki, 1:19.019
7 Ryan Rainey, Yamaha, 1:19.092
8 Ben Wilson, Suzuki, 1:19.119
9 Stephen Thompson, Suzuki, 1:19.124
10 Tristan Palmer, Suzuki, 1:19.136

13 Steve Allan, MSS Discovery Kawasaki, 1:19.301