The Rizla Suzuki team had a dramatic qualifying session today at Thruxton in Hampshire for round two of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, with Atsushi Watanabe finishing in 11th and Tom Sykes in 12th.
Wet and blustery weather made conditions difficult on the 2.4 mile high speed track, but the Rizla Suzuki racers worked steadily at reducing their lap times throughout free practice.
During the damp 50-minute qualifying session Sykes crashed at Noble corner without injury. “The session started out OK but I decided to try a harder rear tyre which didn’t feel great,” explained Sykes. “I got a clear run out to the back of the circuit and was in fourth gear when the rear let go. It took up a lot of the session trying to get back out again on my number two machine.
“The third row of the grid is not where I had expected to be but it is a long race and I’m going out there tomorrow to bag as many points as possible," he concluded.
Atsushi worked hard learning the high speed circuit and was aiming for a top 10 qualifying. He said: “This is my first time on Pirelli tyres in wet conditions and on UK circuit in rain. I wanted better position but on my last try for fast lap there were many slow riders. Lots of different conditions on track too, some drying lines and some wet lines. I’m still learning but I think I can go faster tomorrow.”
Jack Valentine, Team Manager commented: “I had a chat with Atsushi after free practice and we agreed he was aiming for a top 10 so I’m really pleased that he was moving up the order and qualified 11th. He is still adapting to the faster parts of the track but on the slower sections he is able to stick with the BSB regulars.
“As for Tom he was in contention for the front row of the grid until he tried a harder rear and that is when the bike came round on him, he high sided losing a lot of time. He went back out on his second bike but by the time he got up to speed he had a lot of traffic to contend with. A good start tomorrow and I’m confident he can still run at the front.”
Pole position was set by Ducati’s Shane Byrne with a time of 1min19.704secs. The race action kicks off tomorrow at 13:00 followed by race two at 15:30. This will be the first British Superbike race of 2008 since round one of the championship at Brands Hatch was cancelled due to heavy snow. The racing and will be shown live on Eurosport from 12:30, with a highlights programme broadcast on Channel 4 at 01:10 on Tuesday 22nd April.
Qualifying Results:1: Shane Byrne (Ducati) 1:19.704
2: Leon Haslam (Honda) +0.168
3: Michael Rutter (Ducati) +0.245
4: Cal Crutchlow (Honda) +0.322
5: Karl Harris (Yamaha) +0.668
6: Leon Camier (Ducati) +0.787
7: Adam Jenkinson (Honda) +1.138
8: Michael Laverty (Suzuki) +1.154
9: John Laverty (Ducati) +1.501
10: Sean Emmett (Yamaha) +1.652
11: ATSUSHI WATANABE (RIZLA SUZUKI) +1.67412: TOM SYKES (RIZLA SUZUKI) +1.694
