Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport rider Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne put in a tremendous lap of 1m14.644s at a hot and sunny Thruxton today and as a result will start tomorrow’s two rounds of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship from the front row of the grid. The 30 year old Londoner posted third fastest time on the VK backed Honda Fireblade 1000cc having held pole position for much of the fifty minute session at the Hampshire circuit.
Team mate Tom Sykes also produced a great performance to post a lap of 1m14.796s meaning he will start tomorrow’s two 22-lappers from fifth position on the grid as he goes in search of more points also.
Shane Byrne:“Since Friday morning the team has worked really hard and we’ve just got better and better. There was a lot of work to do and the boys have come up trumps and we’re now in good shape for the races. It was disappointing to drop off pole but last week we were seventh and now we’re third, so I’m well happy.”
Tom Sykes:“I’m reasonably happy but on the qualifying lap I made a mistake and that definitely cost me a front row start but its just one of those things. We’ve got a good race set up and a second row start which is good enough to win the race, so I’m hoping for a good start and some good consistent results tomorrow. ”
Paul Bird:“Great qualifying from both riders, especially Tom as it’s only his second meeting on the bike and his second meeting on Dunlop tyres so it’s a good start to the weekend, and Shakey was fantastic also. They’ve both got a good race set up and hopefully they can carry the momentum forward to tomorrow and be challenging for rostrums and possible race wins.”
The first 22-lap race gets underway at 13.00 followed by the second one at 15.30 which is live on ITV1.
Qualifying:1, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) 1m14.433s,
2, Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) 1m14.488s,
3, Shane Byrne (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) 1m14.644s,
4, Jonathan Rea (Honda) 1m14.762s,
5, Tom Sykes (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) 1m14.796s,
6, Leon Camier (Honda) 1m14.938s,
7, Chris Walker (Suzuki) 1m14.972s,
8, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 1m15.097s,
9, Cal Crutchlow (Suzuki) 1m15.164s,
10, Leon Haslam (Ducati) 1m15.236s.
Related Linkswww.stobartmotorsport.com
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