Karl Harris will line up in the middle of the second row for the third round of the 2008 Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park (Monday 5th May).
The 27-year old Sheffield-based rider propelled his Rob Mac Racing Yamaha YZF-R1 into fifth position during the closing moments, only to be nudged back one spot by Leon Haslam in the dying seconds of the Swan Combi 50 - Roll for Pole qualifying session.
The early exchanges were dogged by changing weather conditions leaving the riders and teams in a conundrum of correct Pirelli tyre choices. Karl opted for slicks front and rear, but the first real dry session of the season highlighted a few minor dry set-up issues that kept Karl sidelined for large portions of the session. Despite carrying an injury from Thruxton and only completing 14 laps, Karl heroically posted a time of 1:37.908 to line up in sixth.
Karl will take to the grid at the Cheshire circuit on Bank Holiday Monday for the first of the two 18-lap races at 13.00. ŒBomber' Harris will then show his support for the Road Safety campaign with an interview at the Think! stand at 14.15, before taking to the grid for the second Superbike race of the day at 15.30. Both races will be screened live on British Eurosport
Karl Harris:
"I'm a bit frustrated because we had a few minor problems in qualifying that lost us some time. I've been feeling better as the weekend has gone on and it's changed the way I'm now riding, which has effected the handling of my bike. It's nothing that we can't change for tomorrow, I'll be dependent on a good start but I'm feeling really confident for the race."
Rob McElnea, Team Principal: "We are over the moon with that. If you'd told me at Thruxton that we'd be lining up in P6 after that accident I wouldn't have believed it! The pressure was on a bit in that session as we had a few issues, it's our first decent run out in dry conditions this season and it has highlighted a few minor changes for our dry setting. Karl is getting fitter as the weekend progresses and he is fully committed to putting in another gritty performance for us. To be honest if we can get our season started with a few solid top 6 results with an injured rider, it should set us up for the remainder of the season."
Qualifying Result:
1. Crutchlow (Honda)
2. Byrne (Ducati)
3. Sykes (Suzuki)
4. Haslam (Honda)
5. Rutter (Ducati)
6. Harris (Rob Mac Racing Yamaha)7. Camier (Ducati)
8. M.Laverty (Suzuki)
9. J.Ellison (Honda)
10. Andrews (Yamaha)
British Eurosport Live TV Broadcast Window, 12.30 - 16.30 (Monday 5th May).
