Worx Suzuki's Sylvain Guintoli had to get used to the rough and tumble of British Superbikes very quickly over the weekend at Brands Hatch with team boss Jack Valentine saying there is no messing about in this class.

Frenchman Guintoli is more used to the relative 'no, no, after-you' MotoGP style of over overtaking which prompted criticism of James Toseland when he waded in last year with his Superbike paint-swapping style.

“In the early stages of that second race there was quite a bit of sparring going on with the Honda riders and we could see he was being held up. But you could see Sylvain’s quality shine through when he got a clear track, being smooth and not so aggressive on the bike he was pulling in the leaders. He just needed more laps," said Valentine.
 
“In the end it was a proper welcome to BSB for Sylvain, he’s come out on top but he’s also gained an understanding that the BSB riders won’t take any messing about and I’ll think he’ll come back at the next round all the stronger for it.”

It was Guintoli's first race win since he stood atop the podium at Pau in 2000 after winning a French 250GP race.