Airwaves Ducati made the most of their first dry practice at Mallory Park this morning, Gregorio Lavilla was 2nd fastest with a time of 56.218 and Leon Haslam was 3rd with a time of 56.221. However as there had been no official qualifying session the grid lined up according to championship positions, leaving Leon on 3rd and Greg 4th.
In the first 30 lap race Leon was in 5th and Greg in 6th as the top 6 moved away from the rest of the field. Leon moved into 4th position to battle with Jonathan Rea for the final podium spot. Kiyonari then crashed out whilst leading, pushing Leon into 3rd and Greg up to 5th. Leon continued to push hard for 2nd place but neither Airwaves Ducati rider bettered their position, taking the chequered flag in 3rd and 5th.
Both Airwaves Ducati riders got a good start in race two. By the end of lap one Leon was in 3rd and Greg was 6th. Following a safety car on lap 10 the race re-commenced and Leon was closely chasing Jonathan Rea’s 2nd place again. However Rea crashed out on lap 22 causing a red flag and declaration of the race. This resulted in a 2nd place finish for Leon and a 7th position for Greg.
Greg had stated after the first race that he was feeling discomfort in his ribs. He then commented after race two, “I could not go any quicker; race two was much better than race one but I would have had to be strong to pass anyone and I wasn’t feeling too strong today. Physically I have not felt the best but it has not just been physical today, I struggled for grip in some places and the bike set up was not perfect. In the second race I got a better start and I felt good but I struggled to go very quickly. We have a few weeks off now and I will use it to rest, recover fully and then start training properly again ready for Croft.” He added, “It has been a sad weekend for BSB and I would like to take this opportunity to extend my best wishes to the Bridewell family and Team NB.”
Leon Haslam was clearly pleased with his 36 points today saying; “Considering this is one of our worst tracks I am over the moon that I have come here and closed 11 points on the championship leaders. I possibly could have got two wins today but I was finding it really difficult to overtake so I am happy to go away with a 3rd and a 2nd. We have a bit of a rest now and then back to Croft and the start of the last leg of the season. I am feeling good and we have some of my favourite circuits coming up; I think I will be able to put in some good performances in the next few rounds. It has been a good weekend for me but obviously it is such a shame that it has come after such sad news on Friday. I would like to send my condolences to the Bridewell’s and Team NB; Ollie was such a nice guy, it is really sad news for everyone involved in the sport.”
Round 10 of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship takes place at Croft on August 12th 2007.
Race One Results- Shane Byrne – Stobart Vent Axia
- Jonathan Rea – HM Plant Honda
- Leon Haslam – Airwaves Ducati
- Chris Walker – Rizla Suzuki
- Gregorio Lavilla – Airwaves Ducati
- Tom Sykes – Stobart Vent Axia
- Tommy Hill – Virgin Media Optoma Loans
Race Two Results- Ryuichi Kiyonari – HM Plant Honda
- Leon Haslam – Airwaves Ducati
- Shane Byrne – Stobart Vent Axia
- Tom Sykes – Stobart Vent Axia
- Cal Crutchlow – Rizla Suzuki
- Chris Walker – Rizla Suzuki
- Gregorio Lavilla – Airwaves Ducati
Championship Points- Ryuichi Kiyonari – 298
- Jonathan Rea – 282
- Leon Haslam – 267
- Gregorio Lavilla - 246
- Shane Byrne - 228
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