Danny Buchan took his and Synetiq BMW’s second Bennetts British Superbike Championship win of the day at Knockhill when he came out on top of a shortened second race on Sunday afternoon.
The Essex rider took over the lead on lap 24 after sensational rookie Rory Skinner (FS-3 Racing Kawasaki) had led from the opening lap but a red flag, due to Glenn Irwin crashing out, shortly afterwards denied everyone a grandstand finish.
Tarran Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha) took third ahead of Christian Iddon (VisionTrack Ducati) who leaves Scotland as the Championship leader from Oulton’s triple race winner Jason O’Halloran (McAMS Yamaha).
It was Mackenzie who grabbed the lead off the line but Skinner took over with a move up the inside at the hairpin and it was Iddon, Peter Hickman (FHO Racing BMW), Buchan and Bradley Ray (Rich Energy OMG Racing BMW) who slotted into the early top six positions.
Iddon slid up the inside of Mackenzie at the hairpin on the third lap and Hickman pulled off the same move a lap later as Skinner continued to run at the front, three tenths clear of series leader Iddon.
The hairpin proved to be Mackenzie’s undoing again on lap five as Buchan moved ahead of him but Skinner’s lead was down to 0.190s as both Iddon and Hickman closed in. Ray’s early pace was again there for all to see as he was the fastest man on track although he remained in sixth.
Skinner continued to maintain his lead at one-thirds race distance but moves were happening behind him, Mackenzie squeezing by Buchan at the hairpin on lap ten and then Hickman doing the same to Iddon a lap later.
Iddon retaliated a lap later and in doing so pushed Hickman slightly wide which gave Buchan the opportunity to also move ahead, the two BMW riders touching slightly on the exit of the hairpin. Hickman slipped back to seventh as a result.
All the battling behind allowed Skinner to extend his lead and at half race distance, he was a second clear of Iddon, Mackenzie, Buchan, Ray and Gino Rea (Buildbase Suzuki) who had now also found a way by Hickman.
The leading seven riders had pulled away from the five-rider battle for eighth which was now headed by O’Halloran from Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Products Ducati) and Ryan Vickers (RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki)
As the race entered its final third, Iddon had cut the gap to Skinner to half a second and had taken Buchan and Mackenzie with him, the BMW rider taking over third at Clark’s.
Buchan wasn’t done there either and took second off Iddon at the hairpin on lap 22 and although the Ducati man responded straightaway going into turn one, Buchan put in a strong move at turn three which resulted in Iddon dropping back to fourth.
It was clear Buchan was intent on the win and sure enough he dived up the inside of Skinner at Clark’s on lap 24 with Iddon threatening to make a move on Mackenzie as the group bunched back up.
However, the red flag came out shortly afterwards after Honda’s Irwin went down at Scotsman’s and Buchan got his second win of the day ahead of Skinner and Mackenzie.
Iddon had to settle for fourth ahead of Ray but with O’Halloran in sixth, he extended his championship lead to six points. Bridewell, Hickman, Vickers and Jackson completed the top ten with Josh Brookes in 13th on this occasion.
