Anvil Hire TAG Yamaha’s Josh Brookes threw down the gauntlet to his fellow showdown rivals as he set the quickest time in the second MCE British Superbike free practice session at Oulton Park.
The Bringelly rider was only a tenth off his own lap record at the Cheshire circuit with a 1’34.557. Title hopeful, RAF Reserves Kawasaki’s Jake Dixon clocked the second fastest time and went 0.2s slower than the former BSB champ.
The pace-setter in the first session was Tyco BMW’s Christian Iddon, and he was once again in the mix, but unfortunately was unable to lap a sub 1’25 time. The earlier session was held in very damp conditions but this afternoon was the first time that the racers were able to experience a fully dry track.
Moto Rapido Ducati’s John Hopkins hopped to fourth on the sheets and was a tiny 0.05s off Iddon’s best lap, with title challenger, JG Speedfit Kawasaki’s Leon Haslam completing the top five. The ZX-10RR man was in the garage for some of the session but in the end he set exactly the same time as fellow championship fighter, Jason O’Halloran.
The showdown pair both lapped a 1’35.222. The outing was red flagged on the 23 minute mark when Martin Jessopp’s bike’s engine went bang and he came to a stop at Old Hall. But soon the session was restarted and Ellison, Ray and Bridewell made up the top ten finishers, alongside showdown rider, Peter Hickman.
The Smiths BMW lad ended the session in eighth, with current championship leader Shane Byrne on 11th, followed by JG Speedfit Kawasaki’s Luke Mossey. Glenn Irwin has recently committed his future to the Be Wiser Ducati outfit and he went P13.
Bennetts Suzuki’s Taylor Mackenzie and Tyco BMW’s Andy Reid were missing from today’s track activities. They are both recovering from injuries they sustained at the last round at Silverstone. Reid is nursing a broken femur and Mackenzie is recovering from a broken left foot.
