Michael Rutter, the leader of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, powered to pole start with the fastest ever two wheel lap of the Croft circuit for the double race sixth round.

The HM Plant Honda rider left it late, finally beating off the challenge of Dean Thomas aboard the Hawk Kawasaki on the final lap of a hectic session, and then by just 0.004seconds.

Rutter clocked a scorching time of 1m 20.624secs, a little over half a second inside the record at the demanding North Yorkshire circuit to claim his third pole start of the campaign.

“I really needed that and now feel confident for the races – this was a good circuit for me last year when I won both races and now I am hoping for the same to enhance my lead in the points,” said Rutter who faces a strong challenge from his fellow front row starts, as only a third of a second separates the top four qualifiers.

Thomas is feeling good; Jonathan Rea, riding the Red Bull Honda again showed the pace that earned him the pole start in the previous round at Mondello Park, while Ryuichi Kiyonari was again well on the pace as he prepares to improve his third place in the title stakes.

Karl Harris, who had set the pace during the wet morning session had to settle for a second row start, lapping in 1m 21.157s, ahead of Glen Richards aboard the second Hawk Kawasaki and fourth in the points Leon Haslam.

Rutter however is fully focussed on the job in hand and determined that he will be enjoying the victor’s champagne - he goes into the races with a 46 points advantage over Gregorio Lavilla.

The Spanish rider struggled during qualifying, with his Airwaves Ducati thirteenth on the leaderboard, meaning a fourth row start, and a best lap some 1.1 seconds slower than Rutter.

John Reynolds, the defending champion, back in action after a two round absence to help the healing process of his right leg, broken in a pre-season testing crash, starts alongside his Rizla Suzuki team-mate Scott Smart on the fourth row of the grid.

James Buckingham was the best of the qualifiers for the British Superbike Cup, putting in a lap of 1m 21.624s aboard his Quay Garage Suzuki, managing to embarrass a number of factory riders also, as he posted the tenth best time overall.

HM Plant Honda Report

Michael Rutter has continued his reign at Croft by securing pole position for tomorrow’s two 22-lap Bennetts British Superbike Championship races. It follows the Leicestershire rider’s double victory at the North Yorkshire circuit in 2004 aboard the HM Plant Honda Racing CBR1000RR Fireblade.

The competition at the 2.172-mile track has been extremely strong throughout the weekend so far. So much so that the Midlander spent part of the afternoon’s qualifying session in the lower part of the top ten – unfamiliar territory for Rutter this season.

However, with his mind on doing everything possible to help him maintain his championship lead tomorrow, the 32-year-old recorded a best time of 1:20.624 and seized first place on the grid. It was also fast enough for Rutter to set a new unofficial lap record.

His HM Plant Honda Racing team-mate Ryuichi Kiyonari will start from the opposite end of the front row in fourth position after setting a best time of 1:20.954. The 22-year-old Japanese rider had held pole position for much of the day’s second qualifying session, however he was unable to maintain his place as the pace setter. The final second saw him forced from second position to fourth by team-mate Rutter and Red Bull Honda’s Jonathan Rea, who claimed third place.

Michael Rutter: “I’m really pleased to have got pole position. Croft is a good circuit for me, and the HM Plant Honda Racing CBR1000RR Fireblade, but the competition here this weekend is extremely strong. I knew that it was important to give myself any edge possible over the opposition, particularly Kiyo, if I’ve got any chance of maintaining my advantage in the series.”

Ryuichi Kiyonari: “I am still adapting to Croft, so I am happy to be in fourth place. I missed the test here recently so I am a little behind the other riders in terms of practice. We have been working on perfecting the set-up of the HM Plant Honda Racing CBR1000RR Fireblade and I am happy that we will be able to get a good result in tomorrow’s races.”

Rizla Suzuki Report

Rizla Suzuki's Scott Smart and John Reynolds will go back to basic suspension settings on their GSX-R1000s after a difficult qualifying session placed them 15th and 16th respectively on the grid for tomorrow's sixth round of the British Superbike Championship at Croft.

With morning qualifying in the wet, it was the second dry session that determined grid positions and both Rizla Suzuki riders struggled to match their lap times from yesterday. Minor changes to the suspension set-ups for both racers upset the handling on their Rizla Suzukis and they did not have time to change back to their previous settings during the 50-minute long session.

The Rizla Suzuki technicians will now revert both GSX-R1000s to tried and tested base suspension settings for tomorrow's races. Reigning British Superbike Champion JR was seventh and Scott 11th in Friday's free practice. Only 1.4 seconds separated the top 17 places in qualifying as Honda's Michael Rutter took pole position.

One of the most popular events on the BSB calendar, a bumper crowd is expected to attend Croft Circuit in North Yorkshire. Superbike racing starts at 1:20pm on Sunday, June 5th. It will be broadcast live on Sky Sports. A highlights package of all the racing will be shown by Channel 4 one week later.

JR: "Yesterday I couldn't have been happier and today was the exact opposite. We didn't make huge changes to my Rizla Suzuki - we simply tried altering the rear suspension. That plainly has not worked and we will go back to yesterday's settings for the races.

"I am incredibly disappointed with today's performance, but if I can find the same feeling in my Rizla Suzuki as yesterday then I am confident I can run competitive lap times in the races. I'll need a couple of dream starts tomorrow starting from the fourth row."

Scott: "It seems that whatever alterations to my Rizla Suzuki we tried today they did not work. I am lacking confidence in the front end of my bike and we are not finding the answers we need.

"We are going to continue working hard and tomorrow I will be giving it my all in the races. I need a good start and I will do my best to latch on to a fast group and try to make up places where I can."

Simon Green, Team Co-ordinator: "That was a very disappointing final qualifying session, particularly after showing such promise yesterday and in the wet this morning. We were expecting front or second row qualifying positions and to end up on the fourth row is difficult to accept. There was an expectation that both riders would build on their earlier performances, but this has not materialised and we need to address how best to get the most out of the races tomorrow.

"JR in 16th is less than 1.4 seconds behind pole position and that is testimony to how competitive British Superbikes really is. It is times like these that really test the team and Rizla Suzuki will now dig deep and come out fighting tomorrow and go for the absolute best results we can."

Red Bull Honda

Red Bull Honda’s Jonathan Rea will start tomorrow’s two 22-lap Bennetts British Superbike Championship races from row one on the grid after a final flying lap elevated the 18-year-old to third position. It is the Ulster teenager’s second consecutive front row start aboard the CBR1000RR Fireblade in his debut season in the world’s premier domestic series.

Despite carrying a slight ankle injury and missing out on last year’s corresponding race, Rea has performed consistently well over the weekend at the 2.172-mile North Yorkshire track. He was second in the first qualifying session for round six of the series and has continued to pick up his pace to match that of his rivals.

A high level of competition from the opposition saw the Red Bull Honda rider’s position vary dramatically during qualifying two, even dropping outside of the top 20 at one point. However, within minutes, the Ballyclare rider was back on form and pushing for a front row position.

It was the final minute – and final lap – though when Rea eventually passed a number of riders including HM Plant Honda Racing’s Ryuichi Kiyonari for his top three spot. He is now more confident of a good start, having already experienced being on the front row when the chequered flag dropped at his home circuit of Mondello Park for round five of the Superbike series.

Jonathan Rea: “I’m really pleased to be on the front row again. It was obviously fantastic to be the youngest person in the championship to ever secure pole position at Mondello Park, but it’s also nice to back it up and prove that I can consistently run with the leading pack. The Red Bull Honda package has come together over the last couple of rounds and the CBR1000RR Fireblade is performing better than I could have imagined.”

Karl Harris

Dean Thomas

"When I saw the time sheet this morning and I was lying in 17th place I thought it was time for me to go home. But in my defence I'd ridden 24 laps on wet tyres and as it started to slightly dry up there were a number of people who had new tyres in so I dropped down the times sheets.

"I knew that the bike was feeling good and I was getting a good race distance from the tyres that I was using and it was looking like the second session would be dry. Luckily for me it was and I managed to go second fastest in the second session but Rutter got me in the last 30 seconds by 0.004 of a second.

"I'm really happy with where I've ended up as I'd set my sights on front row start, obviously I would have been happier on Pole but we can't have it all can we. I just want a pair of consistent results in the race tomorrow and boost my confidence a little bit. I'm feeling really good and the bike feels great so fingers crossed all will run relatively smoothly tomorrow."