Team WD40 rider Tommy Aquino had his best ever Pirelli National Superstock 1000 result at Brands Hatch, taking second place to bag his first podium of the season. After qualifying eleventh on the grid, the Californian had a flying start and whipped up to second position on the first lap in what was to be an incredibly close race.

The 21-year-old found himself in the thick of a nail-biting battle at the front, grabbing the lead on lap six to edge away from the pack and leaving him to tussle with last round winner Homer Racing's Hudson Kennaugh.

The South African passed Aquino on the eighth lap, but the WD40 rider never gave up the fight, finishing less than a second behind the leader, and eventual race victor, Kennaugh. Aquino is delighted with his first Superstock 1000 podium, and is proud that he has made it on the rostrum, especially in his rookie year and on his first time racing on the GP circuit.

“I’m so incredibly happy to be on the podium, it’s an amazing feeling and I’m very proud that I’m finally here. My team have done an incredible job, the bike performed brilliantly which gave me the confidence to push hard during the race and I’m delighted that I’ve collected points for the team and pushed us up the leader board," said Aquino.

"During this championship these tracks have always been new to me so it’s been a huge learning curve over the past few months. Having raced on the Brands Hatch short track before, and testing on the GP track gave me the boost I needed to show what I can really do and it paid off.

"I’m feeling extremely confident going into the next meeting at Oulton Park and there’s definitely more to come from me in the second half of the season.”