Britain’s Neil Hodgson rebounded from a pretty bad day to fourth in Sunday’s Superbike race at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

One day after Hodgson suffered engine problems, and carded his first DNF of the season, and team-mate Miguel Duhamel crashed twice in a race that was red-flagged three times, started four times, and run over two hours and 15 minutes, Hodgson finished fourth with Duhamel sixth.

Sunday’s results were more indicative of how the weekend began. Hodgson qualified on the front row, in fourth, for the first time this season. “I normally screw up qualifying and manage to squeeze myself onto the second row so it’s the first time I’ve been on the front row all year so I’m well pleased,” he said.

Hodgson was one spot off a podium position when his engine failed on the eighth lap of Saturday’s race. The race was stopped when a trio of riders crashed in the oil and water.

One lap earlier, Duhamel had high-sided exiting the Keyhole right in front of Hodgson, who did well to avoid him. But with a lengthy delay to clean the track, the team was able to repair the fallen machine and Duhamel made the re-start, but one lap down. The second start ended on the first lap when the leaders crashed on water a spectator had spilled on the track.

Duhamel’s race ended four laps into the third start when he was fell in the debris of a rider who’d crashed just in front of him.

The veteran riders put that behind them and set out to battle each other on Sunday. Hodgson and Duhamel fought over fourth until the third lap when Hodgson took control. But one small mistake prevented him from staying in the draft of the third place rider and he was consigned to fourth. There was a late challenge from Aaron Yates, but the Suzuki rider crashed on the 18th of 26 laps.

Both races were by Mat Mladin (Suzuki) from teammate Ben Spies. Jamie Hacking (Kawasaki) finished third both days.

Hodgson said: "I think, well I know, I was overrevving the bike in a few spots on the limiter, but the engine had got a lot of kilometers on it and unfortunately I think I just asked too much of it and it went pop.

"But it went pop right on the racing line. I instantly went off the racing line to the edge of the track and then onto the grass and then toured around on and off the track on the grass, but unfortunately where it went pop, that’s where all the crashes were. So I’m sorry for anybody that crashed. I feel really bad about it. But I’ve crashed in oil before.

"Unfortunately, it’s one of the downsides of racing. Sunday I actually got a start and then forgot to turn the traction control on and had a bit of a moment and just lost a bit of time coming out of the Keyhole. And Miguel got back past me. By then I’d just lost that little bit of a tow that I desperately needed all weekend really to try to at least have a go at racing for third. So once that went, there was nothing I could do. I just rode on my lap time that I could ride around without it chattering, which is about a 25.0, which is about the maximum I could do, really."