Sunday wrap from Silverstone

Images Dave Yeomans

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Kyle Ryde delivered an inch-perfect performance at Silverstone today for Buildbase Suzuki, claiming an emotional debut race win in the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, to become the seventh different rider to achieve victory in 2020, as the team became the fifth different winning team.

British Superbike Race Two

At the start of the second race of the weekend, Ryde had been dicing for the lead with Josh Brookes. The Aussie hit the front of the field on lap two, and he held the position despite immense pressure from his rival until the closing stages.

However, Ryde was able to make a move with three laps remaining to push Brookes back into second and the Buildbase Suzuki rider then posted three rapid laps to break away from Brookes and Jason O’Halloran in third, to cross the finish line with a 1m.686s advantage.

The podium battle went down to the wire; and Brookes was able to hold off O’Halloran as the McAMS Yamaha rider was back on the podium, but his team-mate and yesterday’s race winner Tarran Mackenzie, was forced out of action with a technical problem earlier in the race.

Championship leader Glenn Irwin had fought himself into fourth place, after he broke clear of the chasing pack where an intense battle for fifth place raged.

After some incredibly close battles and the order constantly changing, Bradley Ray equaled his best result of the season with a fifth place for SYNETIQ BMW, holding off Tommy Bridewell who moved up the order in the closing stages.

British Superbike Race Three

In the third and final race of the weekend, Ryde was unstoppable and he got an electric start from pole position to lead Glenn Irwin and Brookes on the opening lap. However, O’Halloran soon dived ahead of his rival to grab third position, before snatching second place by the end of lap three.

Ryde was soon trying to make a break, and the Buildbase Suzuki rider executed it perfectly as he was able to edge an advantage over the chasing pack behind him where there was an intense battle for the podium positions.

O’Halloran was holding off Glenn Irwin, despite the McAMS Yamaha rider trying to get ahead of Ryde in the early stages of the race for the lead.

Christian Iddon meanwhile had moved into the mix for the podium fight, and by lap ten he was holding third place ahead of Mackenzie and Glenn Irwin.

At the halfway point of the race, Iddon was able to make a decisive move on O’Halloran for second, but over the final ten laps he started dropping back through the field, and on the final lap the battle for fifth was a Ducati dogfight.

Iddon had held the advantage from Brookes and Bridewell at the start of the final lap, but as they took the chequered flag, the trio had shifted with Bridewell emerging ahead of Brookes and Iddon as they crossed the finish line.

The battle for second meanwhile had intensified between the McAMS Yamaha team-mates with Mackenzie able to fend off the challenges from O’Halloran to claim second place as they celebrated their strongest weekend of the season.

Glenn Irwin finished in fourth place, but the points still give the Honda Racing rider the edge in the championship standings ahead of the next three races at Oulton Park later this month.

Josh Brookes ranks second on the championship points table but trails the Honda man by a significant 35-points.

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Kyle Ryde

“It is hard to explain how I felt after winning the race; it was unexpected and that was probably fifty percent of the emotion in parc ferme. The other half is probably because I have had a couple of up and down years so it is almost like I want to thank Steve and the Buildbase Suzuki team for the faith they had put me in me this season. I am so happy to have won. I had picked the time to try to pass Josh with eight laps to go and I tried to pass him about four times, but it was risky and I didn’t want to take us both down when I had a podium on the cards. I played it safe and got through and then did three qualifying style laps to get a gap and I wasn’t sure how much I had, but I am over the moon. I just wanted to stay out of trouble in the last race and I saved the tyre, then pulled the pin at maybe lap 15 and thought if anyone came with me then let’s go! I tried my best, kept a good rhythm and then just watched my pit board. I was really nervous over the last two laps as I really wanted another win and I loved every second of that race. I think today has been unexpected but it is a great feeling, and I can’t wait for Oulton Park now. The bike has been amazing today and I want to thank everyone for their support.”

Josh Brookes

“The team did a great job overnight with the bike and it gave me that little bit that I was missing in yesterday’s race but although I led for much of the first race, I knew the guys were right behind me. I just focused on what I could do, rather than worry about their race strategies and was happy with a podium. I was disappointed to finish in sixth place in the second race, but I did the best I could but overall, it’s been a tough weekend. I’m now looking forward to Oulton Park where we know the bike will work better.”

Andrew Irwin

“When we arrived this weekend we knew we needed three finishes and we’re leaving with that. Yesterday was quite good, but I made a mistake and if I hadn’t then I think we’d have been a lot closer to the podium than we were. This morning I wrecked a tyre in the opening race to cross the line ninth and in the final race we finished again ninth; I had consistent rhythm but it wasn’t as consistent as the riders in front of me. It’s frustrating, but we have to keep our heads up, keep positive and try to turn it around, and I’m sure we’ll be back on track in no time.”

Glenn Irwin

“I’m content with this weekend, we said coming in that the Yamaha and Suzuki’s would be strong, and hats off to Kyle, a debut double-win is a fantastic achievement. Looking at our rivals we were in similar positions, we could all go fast as qualifying showed, but doing what those leading guys were doing over the 30 laps, that was difficult. After yesterday we worked really hard for today and made improvements so we could hang in there to be best of the rest and being realistic, finishing fourth was the most we could achieve safely this weekend. I’m happy to have extended the championship lead, which is all that matters to be truthfully honest. Thanks to my crew who worked so hard this weekend, the boss man Harv will be happy, he’s extended the lead without having to pay a win bonus!”

Christian Iddon

“It’s been a very tough weekend for me. The problems we had didn’t occur until the Christian Iddon & Josh Brookesfirst race yesterday which was going OK until we had a technical issue with the tyre, and I was lucky to finish. The opening race today was horrendous with another couple of technical problems including another tyre issue so going into the third and final race, I wasn’t feeling confident at all. I tried a different strategy and it was a positive step but with three laps to go, the problems reoccurred, and I got mugged by three or four people. I came here with high hopes and our results didn’t reflect that, so we learn from it and move on.”

Peter Hickman

“To say it’s been a tough, and frustrating, weekend would be an understatement and firstly my thoughts are with Alex so hopefully he’ll make a swift recovery. With regards to my weekend, we’ve made every possible change you can think of but the feeling with the bike has still been the same and the tyre change for 2020 has really hit us and the bike hard. With the amount of changes we’ve made, it’s hard to know what else we can do and all the other BMW riders seem to be in the same position. The bike itself doesn’t feel too bad but we’re just not fast enough or competitive enough so it’s a hard one to take right now. The amount of hard work from the team has been unreal so that’s what we’ll continue to do.”

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British Superbike Race Two

British Superbike Race Three

Bennetts British Superbike Championship standings after Round 9

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Supersport / GP2

Rory Skinner continued his dominant form in the Quattro Group British Supersport class, taking another victory in the Feature race at Silverstone. Skinner grabbed the holeshot and was able to extend his lead away at the front, with Ben Currie running second and Brad Jones third. With Skinner enjoying a 1.6s lead, a safety car on lap five saw the group bunch back up.

With the race resuming Jones was immediately through into second but Skinner was able to immediately edge away at the front. Jamie Perrin moved up to third on lap 10, setting a new lap record in the process as he looked to close up on Jones, taking over second place on lap 12.

As Skinner controlled the race front the front, it was a four rider battle for second place with Perrin, Jones, Currie and Johnston trading places with every lap. A string of fast laps from Harry Truelove and Bradley Perie saw them enter the podium battle, coming down to the final lap fight with Jones moving from fourth to second in the final complex whilst Truelove completed the podium in third. Perrin finished fourth ahead of Australian Ben Currie who is now eighth in the championship standings.

Supersport / GP2 Race 2

Supersport / GP2 Race 2 Championship Standings

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Superstock 1000

Tim Neave secured victory in the Pirelli National Superstock 1000 victory at Silverstone, beating Chrissy Rouse by 0.062s. It was Tim Neave who held the lead over the line at the opening line, but Lewis Rollo has found his way through at the start of lap two, with Tom Neave third ahead of Chrissy Rouse and Billy McConnell. Rollo and Tom Neave, were initially able to edge away, but Rouse was soon able to close back up and take the lead.

Tim Neave moved back into the lead on lap 13, pulling a small lead over the pursuing pack and setting a new lap record in the process. Despite a strong of fast laps at the end, Neave was able to fend off Rouse to take the win with Tom Neave taking third ahead of Australian Billy McConnell and Kiwi Damon Rees.  The New Zealander remains in third place on the points table while McConnell ranks fifth.

Tumut’s Brayden Elliott unfortunately failed to add to his points tally with an 18th place finish on Sunday.  Kiwi Shane Richardson finished the bout in 13th place.

Tim Neave – P1

“I was made up with the win. I knew we were strong and had the pace all weekend, but I made that mistake in race one. It was hard to break the pack today but I was pleased to be able to get to the front and do my thing. A big thank you to the team – this is a massive step forward for me over the last few years, so thank you to Steve and Stuart for the opportunity.”

Damon Rees – P5

“I was feeling awesome after going fastest in warm-up. The changes we made to our Carl Cox Motorsport supported Astro JJR Racing BMW S1000rr were perfect, and I knew I was in a good position going into the race.
It got off to a decent start, holding my P6 start position for majority of the race. It was feeling good, but the field was riding at an incredible pace, making it very difficult to make passes. Then, in the final laps I made a charge for 5th, I started to get into the groove, and made up almost a second on 4th in the final lap, but it was a little too late and I crossed the finish in P5.  I’m really happy with my results this round, I had never ridden Silverstone before Friday and made consistent progress throughout the weekend. And the best part is, I remain 3rd in the Championship going into Round 4 at Oulton Park! I truly can’t thank the Astro JJR team enough for their tireless work this weekend. We work so well together and it proves in our results. I also want to congratulate my team-mate Shane Richardson for his awesome riding this weekend, it’s been a tough season for him so-far, but he’s finally overcome it all and got some points on the board! And of course, I can’t thank my Sponsors & Supporters enough, they are the reason I’m able to be here chasing my dreams!”

Superstock 1000 Race Results

Superstock 1000 Championship Points

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Junior Supersport

Owen Jenner took victory in an epic 15-lap thriller in the Hel Performance British Junior Supersport race. In a similar fashion to yesterday’s opening race, it was a race long battle between ten riders, trading places at every corner.

Coming down to the final lap, Jenner was able to claim the win by just 0.05s ahead of McManus with Crockford completing the podium in third. The top ten riders were separated by just 1.1s.

Seth Crump recorded his first DNF of the season, going out of the bout at half-race distance but the young Aussie remains in second place on the championship points table.

Junior Supersport Race Two Results

Junior Supersport Championship Standings

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Ducati TriOptions Cup

Levi Day took victory in the second Ducati TriOptions Cup race at Silverstone. He held the early race lead, with Ed Best, Elliot Pinson and Josh Day in close contention. In a repeat of yesterday’s race, Josh Day was soon up to second and the leading duo were able to break away from the pursuing pack.

It was drama behind as Pinson and Best crashed out of the podium positions on lap 11, promoting Shoubridge to third, with Carl Stevens and Craig Neve fourth and fifth. Coming down to the final lap, Levi Day was able to take victory ahead of Josh Day, with Shoubridge taking the final rostrum position.

Levi Day – P1

“P1 today! So pleased to take my first win of the season today, after a number of 2nd places so far! Got a great start and managed to lead it from start to finish, with just under half a second to Josh Day in 2nd place at the end of the race. Really enjoyed that and one of my best rides to date!  Can’t thank all the team enough for all their hard work! Nigel, Paul and Darren for working hard on the bike and on me as a rider through out the whole weekend, Katie for always killing it on my pitboard and looking after all the team with amazing food each day and taking care of Max full time while away at the race track. Mike from Boast Plumbing Supplies for all his support.”

John McGuinness – P6

“I’ve really enjoyed the weekend and having tested here earlier in the year, it put me in a good position from the word go. Free practice went well so it was a bit annoying that I got a hole in the exhaust and lost a bit of power but I knew ninth wasn’t where I should be. I made another good start in the race and felt strong throughout and as I keep saying, I’m learning all the time. I had a good dust up with Craig (Neve) and it was pleasing to get back into the top six as this is where I feel I should be. Unfortunately, the second race didn’t pan out in the same vein. I’m not going to stand here and make excuses but it honestly felt like I had a different motorbike underneath me. We didn’t make any changes and I was well up for the fight but I couldn’t run the lap times like I did on Saturday and tenth was the best I could do. I guess you could say it was a weekend of two halves but it was another pair of top ten finishes and I’m still seventh in the table so roll on Oulton.”

Ducati Performance TriOptions Cup Race Two

Ducati Performance TriOptions Cup Championship Standings

Source: MCNews.com.au