Hill wins Oulton Park BSB race one
Race One (Race of Brands Hatch) 8 laps
1: Tommy Hill (Swan Yamaha)
2: Noriyuki Haga (Swan Yamaha) +1.525s
3: Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki) +1.685s
4: Alastair Seeley (Tyco Suzuki) +4.320s
5: Tommy Bridewell (Swan Yamaha) +4.460s
6: Michael Laverty (Samsung Honda) +6.340s
Championship standings:
1: Tommy Hill (Swan Yamaha) 65
2: Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki) 63
3: Ian Lowry (Padgetts Honda) 49
4: Jon Kirkham (Samsung Honda) 43
5: Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) 43
6: Alastair Seeley (Tyco Suzuki) 34
Qualifying for Monday race one – top six
1:Tommy Hill (Swan Yamaha) 1m:35.606s
2:Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) +0.506s
3:Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki) +0.548s
4:Noriyuki Haga (Swan Yamaha) +0.599s
5:Tommy Bridewell (Supersonic BMW) +0.770s
6:Alex Lowes (WFR Honda) +1.118s
Report
MCE BSB champion Tommy Hill hailed his winning performance at Oulton Park as ‘the best of his career’ after beating his Swan Yamaha team-mate Noriyuiki Haga and Josh Brookes in the first race of the Bank Holiday weekend.
The race had seen Hill start on the fifth row of the grid but he powered in a performance full of fight and determination to carve through the pack and snatch his first victory of the season.
Hill enthused: “People talk about the last race of last season when I won the title as being the best but for me this one has to be one of the best. I went into it with an open mind as I knew that it would be tough because of my starting position but my bike was working well and I went for it. OK the race was stopped but on the re-start Nori pushed on hard but I wanted this one, I really did.”
Hill had been running third, just adrift of Josh Brookes and Shane Byrne on the ninth lap when Jon Kirkham crashed heavily and at high-speed at Water Tower, he suffered concussion, with the race red-flagged.
On the restart, over eight laps, Brookes led the pack on the opening lap, but Haga forged ahead and looked set for a first MCE BSB victory but Hill had other ideas. The defending champion took the lead at Lakeside and went on to take his first win of the season. Haga scored his maiden podium in the championship whilst Brookes finished third, to give Hill a two point lead in the overall standings.
Hill is in a strong position to increase that lead as he starts the first of the two Bank Holiday Monday races at the Cheshire circuit from pole position, having out-qualified Shane Byrne, Brookes and Haga.
– Quattro Plant Kawasaki Report
Thruxton gremlins strike again at home circuit
The cancelled Brands Hatch race 2 re-run was held this weekend at Quattro Plant’s home circuit at Oulton Park in Cheshire. The fastest race times from race 1 saw Gary Mason start from the first row of the grid, whilst team mate Freddy Foray had a fourth row start from P14.
Mason made a good start to the first race of the bank holiday weekend, making several places before turn one, only to be slowed down as the safety car was brought out due to an incident involving his team mate. However, early in lap 1 Mason was experiencing electrical problems that saw him fall back down the order after the safety car came in and consequentially meant his retire in lap 5.
The incident involving Freddy Foray was a result of his ZX-10R losing grip under acceleration at Lakeside, therefore, dumping him to the ground, ending his first race at the Northwest circuit.
After leaving the medical centre Freddy Foray commented, “I remember the bike stepping out and then I was hit hard in my back and neck when I was falling to the ground. I will have to be re-assessed by the medical staff in the morning, the team and I will then have to make the decision on whether I can race or not.”
On his retirement, Gary Mason commented. “I am obviously very disappointed for the team with the result. With this being our home circuit and a front row start; we were expecting a good result. Having an electrical issue and my second DNF in as many races is frustrating, but we have another two races tomorrow, so we will come out fighting.”
John Jameson added. “Freddy is OK with no serious injuries, and we will have to evaluate his condition in the morning. The Thruxton gremlins struck for a second time in as many races for Gary, but we have changed his dashboard to hopefully eliminate the issue. Freddy’s bike has been repaired, just in case he is fit to race. We are looking forward to a good day’s racing tomorrow.”