Swan Yamaha’s Tommy Hill won the only race at the seventh round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship race at Oulton Park today after the second race was postponed due to the treacherous weather conditions.
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| Hill takes the chequered flag at a wet Oulton Park |
In the race Hill got off to a flying start from second on the grid as he settled into third place and was instantly putting the pressure on title rivals Shane 'Shakey' Byrne and John Hopkins ahead of him. On the fifth lap Hill stole third place but as Hopkins crashed out of the lead that elevated Hill to second place. He was then able to put a move on Byrne to take the lead and then following a short Safety Car intervention he edged out an advantage to take his first win at the Cheshire track. Michael Laverty meanwhile was running down the order on the opening lap after a problem with his launch control at the start but he worked his way up to finish some solid points in sixth place on the second Swan Yamaha.
The second race of the day has been rescheduled to the Cadwell Park August Bank Holiday round.
Hill said: "I just pushed on in the race; it was never going to be easy but it feels great to have the Swan Yamaha back on the top step of the podium. The conditions weren't the best with the rain but I just had to keep my concentration and just make sure I didn't crash. I think the team probably wanted me to slow down but I just didn't want to lose that win! I knew I could get into a good rhythm and I was taking a few risks to stay ahead of the others, especially after the safety car but it was enough to break them."
Laverty said: "The race was disappointing for me, especially to finish sixth when we knew we had potential to be on the podium. I had a bad start as I had a problem with my launch control off the line and it meant I dropped outside the top ten and I had to work my way back up. When the safety car came out I lost temperature in my rear tyre and then it took a few laps to regain it which meant I lost ground on the others and had to settle for sixth. We have been fast all weekend but sixth means we scored points for the championship and we remained inside the top six in the standings which was the priority."
The second race of the day has been rescheduled to the Cadwell Park August Bank Holiday round.
Hill said: "I just pushed on in the race; it was never going to be easy but it feels great to have the Swan Yamaha back on the top step of the podium. The conditions weren't the best with the rain but I just had to keep my concentration and just make sure I didn't crash. I think the team probably wanted me to slow down but I just didn't want to lose that win! I knew I could get into a good rhythm and I was taking a few risks to stay ahead of the others, especially after the safety car but it was enough to break them."
Laverty said: "The race was disappointing for me, especially to finish sixth when we knew we had potential to be on the podium. I had a bad start as I had a problem with my launch control off the line and it meant I dropped outside the top ten and I had to work my way back up. When the safety car came out I lost temperature in my rear tyre and then it took a few laps to regain it which meant I lost ground on the others and had to settle for sixth. We have been fast all weekend but sixth means we scored points for the championship and we remained inside the top six in the standings which was the priority."
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| A dissappointing 6th for Michael Laverty |
Team Manager Gary Ekerold concluded: "Today it was very difficult in those conditions however the team adapted better than we have had previously in similar situations and both riders had the pace to challenge for our first 1-2 finish of the season. It was great for Tommy to win and Michael would have been up there too I believe had it not been for a problem. It was disappointing to have the second race cancelled but now we look forward to Brands Hatch and the triple-header round we will now have at Cadwell Park."
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