MCE British Superbike Championship
Oulton Park, England
September 17, 2016
Qualifying Results (all on Pirelli tires):
From Knockout Qualifying Session Three:
1. Leon Haslam, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:28.275
2. Shane Byrne, UK (Duc Panigale R), 1:28.370
3. James Ellison, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:28.766
4. Luke Mossey, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:28.870
5. Christian Iddon, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:28.934
6. Dan Linfoot, UK (Hon CBR1000RR SP), 1:29.019
7. Tommy Bridewell, UK (Suz GSX-R1000), 1:29.349
8. Jason O’Halloran, Australia (Hon CBR1000RR SP), 1:29.397
9. Peter Hickman, UK (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:29.400
From Knockout Qualifying Session Two:
10. Lee Jackson, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:29.108
11. Richard Cooper, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:29.236
12. Michael Laverty, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:29.328
13. Alastair Seeley, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:30.398
14. Glenn Irwin, UK (Duc Panigale R), 1:29.587
15. Stuart Easton, UK (Duc Panigale R), 1:29.957
16. Billy McConnell, Australia (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:30.076
17. John Hopkins, USA (Yam YZF-R1), 1:32.927
18. Jakub Smrz, Czech Republic (BMW S1000RR), no time recorded in Qualifying Session Two
From Knockout Qualifying Session One:
19. Filip Backlund, Sweden (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:30.453
20. James Rispoli, USA (Yam YZF-R1), 1:30.924
21. Vittorio Iannuzzo, Italy (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:30.931
22. Josh Hook, Australia (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:31.084
23. Josh Wainwright, UK (BMW S1000RR), 1:31.844
24. Aaron Zanotti, UK (Yam YZF-R1), 1:31.885
25. Shaun Winfield, UK (Yam YZF-R1), 1:32.035
26. Jenny Tinmouth, UK (Hon CBR1000RR SP), 1:32.671
27. Ryuichi Kiyonari, Japan (BMW S1000RR), no time recorded in Qualifying Session One
More, form a press release issued by MotorSport Vision Racing:
Haslam claims home pole as top 13 riders under the lap record in Datatag Qualifying
Leon Haslam secured the pole position for his home round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Donington Park after setting the fastest ever MCE BSB lap of the Leicestershire circuit, with the top 13 riders running under the existing lap record.
The Showdown six made it through to the final Superpole stage of Datatag Qualifying, with John Hopkins and Jakub Smrz crashing out of Q2 whilst pushing for their fastest laps in the second stage, putting them out of contention.
Jason O’Halloran was first to take on Superpole for Honda Racing and the Australian set the initial benchmark time, slightly adrift of the time he set in Q2. Peter Hickman was up next and the first of the JG Speedfit Kawasakis but he couldn’t quite better O’Halloran’s time but only by a slender 0.003s margin.
Dan Linfoot was next on the second of the Honda Racing Fireblades and he went ahead of his team-mate by 0.378s to hit the top of the pack with six riders still to attack their lap.
Tyco BMW’s Christian Iddon was ready to push for the top spot after setting the free practice pace yesterday; he narrowly moved to the top of the times by just 0.085s, which he held for another lap after Tommy Bridewell went third fastest for Bennetts Suzuki.
Luke Mossey then snatched the advantage for the Quattro Plant Teccare Kawasaki team, lapping 0.0645s faster than Iddon to hit the top of the times with three riders still to set a time. The Title Fighter had a short spell at the top though as James Ellison, featuring in his first Superpole of the season, went to the top.
Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne was the penultimate rider to hit the track and the Be Wiser Ducati went straight to the top, pushing 0.396s ahead of Ellison with just championship leader Leon Haslam to go.
Haslam was on the attack and claimed the pole position by just 0.095s as the Title Fighters prepare for the opening races of the Showdown.
MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship, Donington Park, Datatag Superpole result:
Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) 1m:28.275s
Shane Byrne (Be Wiser Ducati) +0.095s
James Ellison (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +0.491s
Luke Mossey (Quattro Plant Teccare Kawasaki) +0.595s
Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW) +0.659s
Dan Linfoot (Honda Racing) +0.744s
Tommy Bridewell (Bennetts Suzuki) +1.074s
Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing) +1.122s
Peter Hickman (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +1.125s
For more information visit www.britishsuperbike.com
Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki)
Pole position, Donington Park
“It’s great to be on pole here at my home round, although I probably pushed too hard as I made a bit of a mistake at the Melbourne Loop. I was really happy with the lap other than that; the pace was super quick although the cooler conditions have thrown a bit of a spanner in the works over race distance runs.
“We have made some good developments this weekend and the team have been working well so I am looking forward to a big fight in the races tomorrow.”
More, from a press release issued by JG Speedfit Kawasaki:
JG SPEEDFIT KAWASAKI KICK-START SHOWDOWN WITH DOUBLE FRONT ROW
17th September 2016 – It was an almost perfect start for the JG Speedfit Kawasaki team at Donington Park, as Leon Haslam claimed pole position for tomorrow’s opening MCE British Superbike Championship race, whilst team mate and fellow Showdown contender James Ellison starts from third. Despite a huge moment on his Superpole lap, Peter Hickman will start from ninth.
It has been a strong weekend for the JG Speedfit Kawasaki team, with all three riders showing strong pace during the three practice sessions. As it has been all season, the pace this weekend has been scintillating with the top nine under the lap record after practice. On combined times, Peter was fourth, Leon sixth and James in 14th after a small crash in the final session.
Moving into qualifying, all three riders knew they had the pace to make it through to the one lap Superpole shoot out. Easing through the opening two sessions, Peter was the second of the nine Superpole riders out on track but a huge moment through the first corner ruined his lap and he will start tomorrow’s opening race from ninth. By virtue of his lap time from Q2, James was seventh out and a stunning 1:28.766 was enough to secure him third place and a front row start. As the last rider out on track, the pressure was on Leon but the Championship leader kept his cool to clock the fastest ever British Superbike lap of Donington Park and claim pole position.
Championship leader Leon Haslam has kicked his Showdown off in perfect fashion “I’m really happy with that lap, particularly as we made a bit of a mistake into the Melbourne loop. The pace this weekend has been so fast and the cooler conditions have thrown a little bit of a spanner in the works in terms of race distance. The team is working brilliantly at the moment though so I think we’re in for two great races. They’re certainly going to be two long races but I can’t wait for it. We’ve spent practice working on race distance but we’ll wait and see what the weather does tomorrow before deciding which compound to use.”
Taking a front row, James Ellison is looking to claim his first win tomorrow “The pace this weekend is unbelievable! I think the top 14 in the first part of qualifying were under the lap record which just goes to show how hard you’ve got to push. This was my first time in the Superpole this year, the lap was really good and the tyre was a little cooler during the opening half but we were able to push forward over the second half. A front row is really important round here and I’m happy to be back up at the front here. We certainly struggled mid-season but the team have made a great step and we know we can now challenge for the race wins tomorrow. I think it’s going to be two close races so I’m looking forward it!”
Having set his fastest ever lap around Donington and confident with his race pace, Peter Hickman is looking forward to tomorrow “It’s been a really good weekend actually. The bike and team are working absolutely mega and I’m lapping Donington miles faster than I ever have – unfortunately so is everyone else! Practice has gone really well and we’ve been pushing the sharp end throughout, particularly in the final session this morning where we ended up third. In qualifying we had great pace in Q1 and Q2 but unfortunately in our one lap flyer I had a huge slide coming out of turn one which ruined the lap for us. Our race pace is really strong though and starting from the third row tomorrow is good so I’m looking forward to two strong races!”
GBmoto Racing Team Principal, Mark Smith-Halvorsen concluded, “It’s been a fantastic day for the JG Speedfit Kawasaki team. We’ve kicked off our Showdown challenge in the strongest possible way with Leon taking pole position and James claiming a front row meaning the two have set themselves up perfectly for the two races tomorrow. Equally, although his qualifying position doesn’t show it Pete has a very strong pace but unfortunately a small mistake on his one flying lap meant he wasn’t able to match his pace from Q2. Tomorrow’s races are not going to be easy but the team is working incredibly well at the moment and I’m confident we’ll be seeing all three JG Speedfit Kawasaki machines up challenging for the front.”
More, from a press release issued by Be Wiser Ducati:
Byrne On Front Row For Showdown Opener
Four-times champion Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne will line up on the front row of the grid for tomorrow’s opening MCE British Superbike Championship race at Donington Park after the Be Wiser Ducati rider Shane Byrnerecorded the second fastest time in this afternoon’s Datatag Extreme Qualifying session.
Having set the second fastest time overall during the free practice sessions for the first of the Showdown rounds, the 39-year-old Londoner came into the three-part qualifying session in confident mood on the factory-backed Ducati Panigale R and immediately set the third quickest time in Q1 for Paul Bird’s Penrith-based team.
That put him through to Q2 and a stunning lap of 1m 28.485s sent him initially quickest only for championship rival Leon Haslam to get the better of him by a tenth of a second. That made the pair the men to beat going into the single lap Superpole session which would ultimately decide the grid for the opening race.
With the fastest riders going in reverse order, Shakey was the penultimate rider to take to the 2.5-mile Grand Prix circuit and had to beat James Ellison’s time of 1m 28.766s which he duly did with a superb lap of 1m 28.370s. He then had to watch what Haslam could do and the Derbyshire rider just bettered him by the tiny margin of 0.095s.
Team-mate Glenn Irwin encountered a number of issues during free practice, including a tumble at Goddards on Friday, and after only managing seven laps this morning due to a technical problem, he was on the back foot heading into Datatag Extreme Qualifying.
There, the Carrickfergus rider found the going tough but made it through to Q2 after setting the 17th fastest time in Q1. He was able to improve his personal best lap time by almost a second but it was only good enough for 14th and so the 26-year-old will start from the fifth row of the grid for the opening race.
Shane Byrne: “Whilst I’m never happy with second, I’m over the moon to be on the front row. We made a small change to the front end of the bike after the last qualifying session, stiffening it up a bit, which was a step in the right direction but when I went into turn one, it felt a bit different and I lost a bit of time. I thought if I could keep the rest of the lap clean, we’d be there or thereabouts but I was perhaps a bit cautious through the loop and lost a tenth or two. It’s a really good lap time though, the Be Wiser Ducati team are doing a great job, and the bike’s great whilst we’ve had a really positive race run today. I don’t stress too much if I don’t get pole position so I’m looking forward to getting my Showdown challenge underway in fine style tomorrow and I can’t wait for the two races.”
Glenn Irwin: “I’ve struggled quite a bit so far this weekend and I haven’t got the bike working how I want so far. I’m lacking feel and have no corner entry speed under braking so I’ve got a bit of work to Glenn Irwindo but we’re hopeful we can find a solution as we know what we need to do now. I lost a bit of track time this morning and it’s the time of year when I need to be performing. Today has been nowhere near my potential so we’ll be working hard between now and tomorrow’s races to turn it round.”
Phil Borley, Technical Director: “Qualifying hasn’t gone too badly today and Shakey only just missed out on pole position so it’s looks good for tomorrow’s races. We never like to get too carried away but we’re pretty confident for some good results from Shakey in the two races. Glenn has struggled a bit though not making it through to Q3 and he has quite a bit of work to do in the opening race. We need to get the bike more stable for him which will make it that bit easier to ride so we’ll look at the data and see what changes are needed to get him firmly inside the top ten.”
More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki Press Office:
BRIDEWELL ON 3RD ROW AT DONINGTON BSB
Tommy Bridewell will start from the third row of the grid in tomorrow’s opening race at Donington Park, after qualifying in seventh place on his Bennetts Suzuki at the 10th round of the MCE British Superbike Championship.
Bridewell progressed comfortably from the opening qualifying session, setting the fourth fastest time, before advancing from Q2 and into Superpole in fifth place on the time sheets.
The one-lap dash in Superpole saw Bridewell unable to match his pace from the earlier sessions, but he is confident of making a strong start from the outside of the third row and battling for a podium finish.
Tommy Bridewell:
“I can’t grumble to be honest. We struggled a little bit to start with but we made a big step for qualifying with the chassis, but I’m also struggling from the crash at Oulton. We’ve had a little electrical issue that the team has worked hard to try and sort, but it did hinder our Superpole lap. But I’ve got a good feeling with the bike, and we should bounce back tomorrow and have two good races.”
Martin Halsall – Team Owner:
“Seventh is further back than we’d liked to have been, given the pace we have, but if you don’t quite get it right on your one lap in Superpole, then this can happen. But it’s far from a disaster. We’ve worked well over the free practice sessions to find a good setting, improving the bike all the time, and we’ve got good race pace. If we get a good start tomorrow, we’re confident we can be fighting for the podium.”