Anvil Hire TAG Yamaha’s Josh Brookes still remains in Showdown contention after finishing the opening MCE British Superbike race at Silverstone in second place.
The former champion secured some ‘highly important’ podium credits with his rostrum finish, and they will prove crucial when the top six points are reset after this round.
In the first race Brookes ran with the full wet Pirelli tyres. An earlier heavy rain shower meant that some parts of the circuit were really wet, but other sections were quite dry. But going around the track the Bringelly rider decided that the full wets were definitely the best option.
His tyre choices certainly paid off as he was able to run up the sharp end alongside eventual race winner, Be Wiser Ducati’s Glenn Irwin and third place finisher, Moto Rapido Ducati’s John Hopkins. At the moment Brookes remains fourth in the overall standings and has a total of 187 points.
“I went out on wets and expected to make a judgement on the citing lap and when I saw patches of dry it was not enough to give me motivation to go with the intermediate tyre because where the water was on the track it was laying like puddles amongst the stones, and I knew that depth of water couldn’t dry enough to run a dry weather tyre,” said Brookes.
“I knew what I wanted before I pulled up. I was surprised to see so many people with various tyres, I saw Guintoli and he had slicks in and I thought wow he’s optimistic. It was strange to see Peter Hickman who is in the Showdown and he wheeled his bike off the grid and bizarre things were happening.
“I tried to match [Glenn’s speed] and every time I tried to go quicker I had a big slide and I had to let him go in that section. We had wet tyres but yet the wet parts of the track were the most challenging – it was tricky. It was hugely important to get the points, and also when the showdown points are reset I have to have as many podium credits as I can.”
