Rizla Suzuki’s Chris ‘Stalker’ Walker took his best qualifying position of the season securing second place on the grid at the 12th round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Donington Park today.
Stalker spent three practice sessions building up his effort, slashing his lap times every outing on circuit. He started strong in qualification but left his best effort to the final minutes, setting a blistering pace at the 2.5-mile long twisting and challenging circuit.
Cal Crutchlow was vying for the top spot on the time-sheets during every session and was challenging again in qualification but was held up by traffic on his quick laps, eventually ending up fifth fastest and heading up the second row. Honda’s Tom Sykes took pole position.
Superbike racing gets underway at Donington Park at 1247 on Sunday, September 23rd, with the second race starting at 1623. The action will be broadcast live on ITV4 with the coverage starting at 1230, while delayed highlights will be shown on Sky Sports 3 at 1930 on the same day.
Stalker...“I am absolutely delighted to have secured my first front row of the season. Every session we made small improvements and kept going faster and during qualification I just threw everything I had at it and second on the grid is just what my Rizla Suzuki team deserves for all their hard efforts this weekend.
“It’s the podium or bust for Stalker tomorrow as I am more determined than ever to get good results for my home fans.”
Cal...“Qualification did not go to plan, between traffic on the circuit and my qualifying tyres I didn’t really get a clean lap to go for pole position. I ended up setting a series of quick times on a race tyre instead.
“The good thing is I was right on the front row pace using a tyre that will last 20-laps while many others could only record those times on two-lap sticky qualifiers. My race pace is good and the podium remains my number one target.”
Simon Buckmaster, Team Manager...“After a test at Donington Park earlier in the year, we always knew Chris was going to be strong and quick here. He’s proved his speed today and is looking forward to the races and fighting for the top honours.
“Cal has been impressive all weekend and his qualifying position belies a race pace that is second to none. With a bit of luck he will get on the podium tomorrow – he certainly has the bike and ability to do so – it’s what step of the podium is the next question...”
Qualification Times- Tom Sykes (Honda) 1:30.901
- CHRIS WALKER (RIZLA SUZUKI) +0.154
- Leon Haslam (Ducati) +0.208
- Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) +0.284
- CAL CRUTCHLOW (RIZLA SUZUKI) +0.354
- Jonathan Rea (Honda) +0.498
- Shane Byrne (Honda) +0.658
- Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) +0.719
- Karl Harris (Honda) +0.788
- Michael Rutter (Kawasaki) +1.052
Related News
