From a press release issued by Hawk Kawasaki:

THINK! BSB Championship, Round 9, July 16

Mallory Park, Leicestershire

Track length: 1.39 miles

Weather: overcast, humid, 24°C

Track: dry, 27°C



PRACTICE



McGUINNESS THIRD IN ULTRA-COMPETITIVE MALLORY PRACTICE



Hawk Kawasaki star John McGuinness ended the first day of practice for the ninth round of the THINK! British Superbike Championship, at Mallory Park, in an excellent third position. Just 0.87 of a second separated the top 15 riders in what proved to be one of the tightest timed practice sessions of the year, with McGuinness a mere tenth of a second off provisional pole.



“I’m really pleased with that because we made real progress when we fitted the 205 Dunlop rear, which I wasn’t too keen on at Brands Hatch,” said McGuinness, who was ninth in the morning’s wet session. “This session it upped my game and bumped me straight up to second. Towards the end I felt really comfortable running at those speeds so I’m happy.”



His BSB race-winning team-mate, Scott Smart, was close behind, just 0.58 off the fastest time, but felt he could have gone quicker had his ZX-10R not succumbed to technical problems in the afternoon’s dry session.



“We had a problem with the quick-shifter, so I came in to get it sorted but it never completely went away,” explained Smarty. “Then we had a misfire which was getting worse and worse and you can’t ride a 170bhp bike with it cutting out all the time. We’ve got a few things to do to the front suspension overnight and if we can get it right I can find 0.3 of a second around just one corner so it’ll be alright.”



Despite the potential pressure of racing at the team’s home track this weekend, Hawk Kawasaki Team Principal was encouraged by his riders’ performances.



“People expect a lot of us at Mallory because it’s our local circuit and the track is also one of our sponsors,” he said. “I try not to put any pressure on the lads because it’s not going to be easy at all. It’s going to be even closer than normal around here and it’s a matter of finding a tyre that will last the distance. If we’re on the first two rows in qualifying I’ll be very, very happy.”



Hawk Kawasaki National Superstock rider Peter Hickman put his disappointing Knockhill weekend behind him by posting third fastest time in practice today. Despite wet conditions, which compounded the 17 year-old’s problems in Scotland two weeks ago, Hickman ran consistently in the top four throughout the 25 minute session.



“Different tracks offer different levels of grip and Mallory is obviously a lot grippier than Knockhill,” he said. “We didn’t even run a tyre warmer on the rear today and I had grip right from the start. To be honest, I was just riding around out there and felt I had plenty in hand so I feel good going into qualifying and I’m confident of a front or second row start.”



BSB PRACTICE 2

Michael Rutter, Honda, 52.286. 2) Sean Emmett, Ducati, 52.361. 3) John McGuinness, Hawk Kawasaki, 52.441. 4) Tommy Hill, Yamaha, 52.538. 5) Gary Mason, Yamaha, 52.544. 6) Dean Thomas, Ducati, 52.617. 7) John Reynolds, Suzuki, 52.625. 8) James Haydon, Yamaha, 52.661. 9) Yukio Kagayama, Suzuki, 52.716. 10) Scott Smart, Hawk Kawasaki, 52.867. 11) Iain MacPherson, Ducati, 52.942. 12) Steve Plater, Yamaha, 52.970. 13) Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, 52.999. 14) Craig Coxhell, Honda, 53.003. 15) Jon Kirkham, Suzuki (P), 53.156