Samsung Suzuki's Jon Kirkham has taken his debut British Superbike win in race one today at Croft ahead of team-mate John Hopkins and the MSS Colchester Kawasaki of Gary Mason who bagged third place for his first ever BSB podium in an event full of rain and crashes.
In a race of attrition, which was declared wet as the weather entirely failed to make up its mind, runaway leader Shane Byrne's HM Plant Honda caught fire on lap eight which brought out the safety car and handed the lead to Hopkins with Mason in third.
As the safety car pulled in, Hopkins tried to make a break but Kirkham, Mason and the Evo-spec WFR Honda of Alex Lowes went with him, going past the Lichfield rider with six laps left to run. Mason was having none of it, though, going back past the youngster while the Suzuki's swapped places at the front.
Kirkham then took the lead with three to go and got the hammer down, crossing the line three seconds ahead of his team leader with Mason a further three-quarters of a second in arrears. Motorpoint Yamaha's Loris Baz took fifth ahead of Lowes.
Stuart Easton, on the second MSS bike, was sixth with Peter Hickman, who was riding in his 100th race, seventh, Josh Brookes came through the field to take eighth. Glen Richards' Evo WFR Honda was ninth and Tommy Bridewell rounded out the top ten.
Michael Rutter's gear lever broke (which happened here last year, we think), both the Swan Yamahas went out on full wets and ran out of grip very quickly. Tommy Hill finished in 14th while Michael Laverty came into the pits right at the end.
Grid for race two:
Kirkham (pole), Hopkins, Mason, Byrne
Baz, Rutter, Lowes, Richards
