 | From Honda Racing
MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship Round seven – Snetterton – 17/18 July
Josh Brookes won the first two races in the seventh round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Snetterton with his HM Plant Honda team-mate, former two times title winner, Ryuichi Kiyonari taking the victory in the other.
But, the joy of their victories was spoiled somewhat as each suffered “engine issues” on Sunday afternoon that sidelined them, Kiyonari in the opener and then Brookes next time out.
For Brookes, his problem not only denied him a potential hat-trick of victories and also cost him the lead in the title stakes as Tommy Hill, returning to his early season consistent form, racked up a third place and then a pair of seconds to regain the lead in the title stakes, though by only two points at the half-way point of the campaign.
Brookes made life hard for himself in the opening race on Saturday afternoon, held over from the weather ravaged Knockhill round, making a slow start, and then a minor error, to be running ninth on the opening lap of the re-started race, after rain had brought out the red-flags.
Kiyonari was leading from Hill while Brookes as on the charges, picking off places to be second to his HM Plant Honda team-mate at half distance, and although he tried to line up overtaking moves, Kiyonari held him at bay, that is until the first corner of the final lap.
Brookes had the inside line and made a perfect move, taking the lead, and with it the race, to win by half a second from Kiyonari.
Further back, James Ellison who had started at the back of the grid was riding superbly to bring his Swan Honda through into seventh place but there was disappointment for his team-mate Stuart Easton who slowed with a machine problem prior to retiring.
Michael Rutter made the running in the first of Sunday’s races with Kiyonari reeling him in, before the Japanese rider was forced out on the fourth lap by a machine problem as Brookes was moving through from fifth to be running third adrift of his title rival Hill.
Brookes moved second at one thirds distance and closed in dramatically on Rutter who slowed momentarily going into the final third of the race, shortly afterwards pulling out with a gear shift problem to his Ducati.
Brookes had the lead and he was in no mood to let that slip, controlling the action from the front and heading off Hill by some 1.5 seconds while Alastair Seeley grabbed third place from Ellison on the penultimate lap. Easton, involved in a slip-streaming five rider scrap on the long Revett Straight ran eighth just adrift of the privately entered Hondas ridden by Tommy Bridewell and Chris Walker.
Ellison made a flying start to the second Sunday afternoon race, running just ahead of Brookes with Michael Laverty third from Kiyonari, Hill and Rutter, but there was bitter disappointment for Easton as a clutch problem prevented him starting.
By the third lap, Honda riders were running in the top three, with Ellison ahead of Brookes and Kiyonari, but the Japanese rider was eager for better and nosed ahead of his team-mate on the seventh lap and began making inroads on the advantage of Ellison.
Kiyonari was leading the race on the ninth lap and soon Brookes was tucked in behind him with Ellison dropping back to fourth and then being taken by Rutter. Brookes, going strong, was soon in trouble, pulling off with a machine problem.
Then on lap 14, Ellison went down as Seeley tried a tight move going into a right-hander bringing Ellison down and the Safety Car out. Kiyonari kept his cool as the race resumed for real, holding off Hill to take his fourth victory of the season, one that consolidates his third place in the championship standings.
Honda BSB personnel quotes
After the Saturday race
Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda): “I didn’t get the start I needed but I knew we had a good race pace so I wasn’t totally worried and knew I just had to keep composed and pick them off one at a time. I did that and then I was closing on Kiyo but I made a mistake into Russells then the laps quickly whittled away and I was running out of time. I didn’t really want to make the pass at turn one as then you have to defend for the rest of the lap but that seemed the only option so I just went for it and I just stayed there.”
Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) “The race was tough and towards the end I knew Josh would be there as he has been so fast and the tyre life was not as good so I didn’t want to push too hard and crash. I changed my riding style a bit and I thought I was going to be able to hold him off but he just came by and I tried but it was impossible to get him back.”
James Ellison (Swan Honda): “I was really happy to finish seventh having started at the back. We managed to make some tweaks since Friday practice that put us back where we need to be, which is encouraging for the Sunday races when we start further up the grid. I am happy to be back up there and I think we can expect even better.”
Stuart Easton (Swan Honda): “It was another disappointing day for me and in the race I had a cam shaft sensor failure, which I felt straight away and I had no option but to pull in. I think that it has rounded out two bad days for me and I want to turn that around.”
After the Sunday races
Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda): “This morning before the race we made some changes to the setting as it wasn’t perfect yesterday and unfortunately we had a problem and couldn’t finish the race which meant we never had a real chance to test it. So for the third race we reverted back to what we had yesterday and I had the pace to fight for the win. I was disappointed after the second race not to have finished but winning race three made up for that.”
Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda): “In the second race I had another bad start and made my way through; I saw Kiyo seemed to be having problems so knew I didn’t have to make a pass. He retired and then I had Rutter ahead of me and knew I had the time to catch him, but then he pulled off too. I just kept steady away and then just held it to take the win. Everything was going well next time out and I was stuck behind James for a few laps and then Kiyo got involved and I maintained the position as I knew Kiyo was quick after we got by Ellison. We then just had an engine problem which put me out, which was disappointing.”
Havier Beltran (team manager HM Plant Honda): “It was fantastic to win all three races here at Snetterton and shows the strength of the Honda CBR1000. It is however obviously disappointing that both riders were forced to retire once whilst at the front of the races with engine issues. We know we have to overcome these if we are to win the championship.”
Stuart Easton (Swan Honda): “In the first Sunday race I was happy to finish eighth after battling through from fifteenth on the grid after we had the problems in qualifying. It was a real confidence booster for me and then I was further up the grid for the final race and thought we had a good shot at a better result. I went out for the sighting lap for the final race and instantly knew there was a problem and the clutch was slipping so I knew that I couldn’t do anything about it and pulled straight into the pits.”
James Ellison (Swan Honda): “In the first race I had the potential for a podium finish or maybe even a race win, but then a back marker got in the way and that messed up my chances so I wasn’t happy as that was a top three finish gone which I really needed and I felt robbed by that. In the second race I was happy leading; I knew I didn’t have the pace to break the HM Plant Honda boys but I felt that I could challenge them for sure and I felt like I could win that race. I knew Alastair Seeley was behind me and he was never going to get past me so it was harsh move and to be taken down by someone else’s mistake is always gutting. It hasn’t affected my leg but my back is really aching and I have displaced my pelvis so now I have to get back to the physio so I am prepared for the next round at Brands Hatch.”
Results Race1
POS / NAME / NAT / BIKE / TIME / GAP
1 / Josh BROOKES / AUS / Honda - HM Plant Honda / 19:41.650 /
2 / Ryuichi KIYONARI / JPN / Honda - HM Plant Honda / 19:42.244 / 0.594
3 / Tommy HILL / GBR / Suzuki - Worx Crescent Suzuki / 19:46.125 / 4.475
4 / Michael RUTTER / GBR / Ducati - RidersMotorcycles.Com / 19:46.639 / 4.989
5 / Alastair SEELEY / GBR / Suzuki - Relentless Suzuki by TAS / 19:47.135 / 5.485
6 / Michael LAVERTY / GBR / Suzuki - Relentless Suzuki by TAS / 19:47.539 / 5.889
7 / James ELLISON / GBR / Honda - Swan Honda / 19:50.798 / 9.148
8 / Simon ANDREWS / GBR / Kawasaki - MSS Colchester Kawasaki / 19:52.955 / 11.305
9 / Gary MASON / GBR / Kawasaki - MSS Colchester Kawasaki / 19:56.014 / 14.364
10 / Tommy BRIDEWELL / GBR / Honda - Quay Garage Honda / 19:56.036 / 14.386
11 / Chris WALKER / GBR / Honda - Sorrymate.com SMT Honda / 19:56.348 / 14.698
12 / John LAVERTY / GBR / Kawasaki - Buildbase Kawasaki / 19:56.657 / 15.007
13 / Dan LINFOOT / GBR / Yamaha - Motorpoint Yamaha / 19:59.108 / 17.458
14 / Andrew PITT / AUS / Yamaha - Motorpoint Yamaha / 20:10.411 / 28.761
15 / Peter HICKMAN / GBR / Yamaha - Ultimate Racing / 20:10.583 / 28.933
Fastest lap: Lap 12 Josh BROOKES AUS Honda - HM Plant Honda 1:04.878
Results Race2
POS / NAME / NAT / BIKE / LAPS / TIME / GAP
1 / Josh BROOKES / AUS / Honda - HM Plant Honda / 24:13.327 /
2 / Tommy HILL / GBR / Suzuki - Worx Crescent Suzuki / 24:14.799 / 1.472
3 / Alastair SEELEY / GBR / Suzuki - Relentless Suzuki by TAS / 24:16.067 / 2.740
4 / James ELLISON / GBR / Honda - Swan Honda / 24:17.084 / 3.757
5 / Michael LAVERTY / GBR / Suzuki - Relentless Suzuki by TAS / 24:17.479 / 4.152
6 / Tommy BRIDEWELL / GBR / Honda - Quay Garage Honda / 24:28.967 / 15.640
7 / Chris WALKER / GBR / Honda - Sorrymate.com SMT Honda / 24:31.106 / 17.779
8 / Stuart EASTON / GBR / Honda - Swan Honda / 24:31.744 / 18.417
9 / Simon ANDREWS / GBR / Kawasaki - MSS Colchester Kawasaki / 24:32.187 / 18.860
10 / John LAVERTY / GBR / Kawasaki - Buildbase Kawasaki / 24:32.458 / 19.131
11 / Gary MASON / GBR / Kawasaki - MSS Colchester Kawasaki / 24:34.873 / 21.546
12 / Andrew PITT / AUS / Yamaha - Motorpoint Yamaha / 24:35.165 / 21.838
13 / Steve BROGAN / GBR / BMW - Jentin Racing - BMW Motorrad / 24:46.326 / 32.999
14 / Gary JOHNSON / GBR / Suzuki - AIM Suzuki / 24:48.296 / 34.969
15 / Tom TUNSTALL / GBR / Honda - Doodson Motorsport / 24:57.399 / 44.072
Fastest lap: Lap 10 Josh BROOKES AUS Honda - HM Plant Honda 1:05.195
Results Race3
POS / NAME / NAT / BIKE / LAPS / TIME / GAP
1 / Ryuichi KIYONARI / JPN / Honda - HM Plant Honda / 26:52.964 /
2 / Tommy HILL / GBR / Suzuki - Worx Crescent Suzuki / 26:53.555 / 0.591
3 / Michael LAVERTY / GBR / Suzuki - Relentless Suzuki by TAS / 26:53.918 / 0.954
4 / Michael RUTTER / GBR / Ducati - RidersMotorcycles.Com / 26:54.548 / 1.584
5 / John LAVERTY / GBR / Kawasaki - Buildbase Kawasaki / 26:56.861 / 3.897
6 / Simon ANDREWS / GBR / Kawasaki - MSS Colchester Kawasaki / 26:57.863 / 4.899
7 / Chris WALKER / GBR / Honda - Sorrymate.com SMT Honda / 26:59.091 / 6.127
8 / Andrew PITT / AUS / Yamaha - Motorpoint Yamaha / 27:01.175 / 8.211
9 / Gary MASON / GBR / Kawasaki - MSS Colchester Kawasaki / 27:01.313 / 8.349
10 / Yukio KAGAYAMA / JPN / Suzuki - Worx Crescent Suzuki / 27:02.530 / 9.566
11 / Peter HICKMAN / GBR / Yamaha - Ultimate Racing / 27:03.627 / 10.663
12 / Dan LINFOOT / GBR / Yamaha - Motorpoint Yamaha / 27:05.110 / 12.146
13 / Steve BROGAN / GBR / BMW - Jentin Racing - BMW Motorrad / 27:09.190 / 16.226
14 / Gary JOHNSON / GBR / Suzuki - AIM Suzuki / 27:10.266 / 17.302
15 / Hudson KENNAUGH / RSA / Aprilia - Splitlath Motorsport / 27:10.571 / 17.607
Fastest lap:Lap 3 Ryuichi KIYONARI JPN Honda - HM Plant Honda 1:04.991
Championship points
Name Total
HILL 218, BROOKES 216, KIYONARI 193, LAVERTY 183, RUTTER 165, LAVERTY 129, SEELEY 128, EASTON 100, WALKER 88, ELLISON 70, BRIDEWELL 66, MASON 60, ANDREWS 60, JESSOPP 57, LINFOOT 36.
 Brookes Wins Two, Kiyonari One at Snetterton () 07/19 09:20 AM 
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