Text and Photos Courtesy Kawasaki  Racing, Suzuki Racing, Yamaha Racing and British Superbike.  Edited by webBikeWorld.

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Race 1 Results
Shane Byrne transferred pole position into race win to claim his fourth win at Thruxton Circuit on his return to Ducati (20 April).

The move to a Pirelli control tire for 2008 provided a frenetic and close-fought opening race of the season.  With a level playing field in terms of rubber, it was left to individual teams to select a favorable compound around the fast and abrasive 2.356mile Hampshire circuit.

Cal Crutchlow looked to be in dominant form, making the early running in the search for his debut victory, as he led
the field for the first 12 laps.  However, the sheer grunt of the new Ducati 1098 proved too much for Crutchlow and
Shane Byrne expertly bided his time before making his move for the lead on his Airwaves Ducati on the 13th lap.

A rejuvenated Michael Rutter on the North West 200 Ducati, left his passing maneuver until lap 18 to claim third
position ahead of Leon Haslam. 

Shane Byrne, Airwaves Ducati: “I have to thank Airwaves Ducati for giving me the opportunity this season.  The whole team has worked so hard this weekend, and after the disappointment of Brands Hatch it’s fantastic to finally get the season off to a winning start.”

Race 2 Results
HM Plant Honda rider, Cal Crutchlow emphatically claimed his maiden British Superbike win in a second race marred by a seventh lap incident involving Tom Sykes’ flying Rizla Suzuki collecting Rob Mac Racing’s Karl Harris.

The Yamaha rider was struck by the flying Suzuki and, once up on his feet, rushed to the Thruxton medical centre. After the short enforced delay, race distance was altered to 15 laps, without Karl Harris and Adam Jenkinson who unfortunately crashed his Yamaha at the 160mph right-hand Church corner.

Tom Sykes dusted down his leathers to storm into an early lead, but HM Plant Honda’s Cal Crutchlow powered to the front at Club on lap 2, never to look back.  As Crutchlow pulled the pin on the way to his debut British Superbike win, a mammoth battle unfolded in the battle for podium positions between Sykes, Rutter, Byrne and Haslam.

Haslam retired at the end of the sixth lap, leaving the way open for Race One winner, Byrne, to hunt down Rutter for
second position.  Byrne finally made his move two laps from home to claim second on the Airwaves Ducati.  Michael Rutter consolidated third position and in doing so, the NW 200 Ducati riders first double podium race meeting since Knockhill in 2005.

As the 2008 Bennetts British Superbike Championship moves on to Round 3 at Oulton Park over the May Bank
Holiday, Cal Crutchlow and Shane Byrne jointly head the points table.

Cal Crutchlow, HM Plant Honda: “I knew we had it in us to take the win but to be honest, I didn’t think it would
come this early in the season.  I controlled the race from exactly where I wanted to be - at the front - but didn’t expect to win by so much.  All the boys at HM Plant Honda have done a fantastic job through pre-season testing to now.  I know there’ll be more wins to come this season.”

Team Suzuki Report
Rizla Suzuki's Tom Sykes, riding with a hand injury, got his Bennetts British Superbike Championship off to a solid start today at Thruxton in Hampshire scoring a sixth place in race one and an eighth in race two.

The gritty Huddersfield rider severely bruised his left thumb in a qualifying crash yesterday and had to ride through the pain barrier in race one, coming home in a strong sixth place after starting from 12th on grid.

In the second race he clashed with Leon Haslam (Honda) while running in fourth place.  This caused a red flag as bike debris was removed from the track. He made the restart and after leading early on he eventually finished eighth.

Thruxton Race Circuit

Rizla Suzuki's two-time Japanese Superbike Champion Atsushi Watanabe finished race one in 17th and race two in 14th. This was his first ever race in the UK and proved a steep learning curve as he got to grips with the 2.4 mile Thruxton circuit and the riding styles of his fellow competitors.

Race one was won by Shane Byrne (Ducati) and race two by Cal Crutchlow (Honda).
The third round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship takes place at Oulton Park on the May 3rd - 5th.

Tom Sykes:  "In race two I got a superb start from the third row of the grid and was up to fourth place.  The bike felt really good as we had made some changes from race one.  Unfortunately Leon Haslam changed his line in front of me and I had no where to go and ended up crashing heavily.  I was a little battered and bruised but otherwise OK so I got out in the restarted race on my spare bike and started from the front row.

"I got the hole-shot and thought I could settle in but struggled for rear grip and the tire started delaminating.  The vibration got too bad so I dropped off the pace and just nursed it home for the points.  I'm really gutted for my team as they worked hard this weekend and we didn't get the result we had hoped for."

Atsushi Watanabe:  "For me this is a very bad result; my lap times improved but I'm not happy with 17th and 14th," he said.  "My team is working well and I'm very happy with that. It was good to race and I now understand BSB race and riders."

Jack Valentine - Rizla Suzuki Team Manager:  "The changes we made to Tom's number two bike following race one made a big difference.  It's a shame about the incident with Haslam as I think we would have been on for a strong result.  On the restart we stayed with the same rear tire, Tom got the hole-shot and was having a really good ride."

"Sadly his rear tire went off and he dropped down the order.  We were hoping for a fourth or fifth place finish but it was so bad he slipped to eighth. We will re-group and fight back at the next round.

"As for Atsushi I think he did fantastic.  He gets faster every time he goes out on track.  It is not until you are racing that you really learn the tracks and conditions.  He is doing as well as we had hoped and his best lap times would put him within the top ten easily."

FUCHS-SILKOLENE BRITISH SUPERSPORT
Steve Brogan (HM Plant Honda) and Glen Richards (MAP Embassy Racing) re-ignited their 2007 season long
Superstock battle throughout the 18-lap Fuchs-Silkolene British Supersport season opener at Thruxton (20 April).

Richards made the better start from pole but could not hold off the advances of Liverpudlian Brogan, who snatched
the lead as early as the second lap on the fast approach to Church corner.  The ensuing 16 laps proved the perfect
testament to close racing that the Pirelli single tire regulations had brought with the onset of the 2008 season.

The notoriously fast and abrasive Thruxton Circuit lived up to its reputation of producing thrilling race action.  A red flag incident at the Club Chicane at the culmination of lap six involving Dennis Hobbs and James Webb saw the
safety car deployed for the following three laps.

With the action recommencing again on lap 10, Richards timed his move perfectly to pass Brogan just over the start/finish line to lead the restart.  However, Brogan regained his rightful place at the front on the run up Woodham Hill into Club out-braking the reigning National Superstock Champion in a battle of nerves.

Australian Glen Richards applied constant pressure on the Fireblade-mounted Brogan, allowing Chris Martin the
chance to elevate his Gearlink Kawasaki into a podium position and quickly close ground on the leading duo.  The final four laps saw a flurry of action, with Martin briefly stealing second on the final lap.  Brogan held a defensive line into Club for the final time, taking the chequered flag less than a tenth of a second from Richards.

The breath-taking action takes a two-week break before lining up on the grid for round three at Oulton park over the
May Bank Holiday (3-5 May).

FOCUSED EVENTS KTM SUPER DUKE BATTLE
Race Guest journalist rider, Alastair Fagan capitalized on a front row start to claim the win at the end of the opening race of the day at Thruxton (20 April).

The Fast Bikes Magazine journalist took the lead from 2007 Championship runner-up Kelvin Reilly with a trademark
Thruxton overtaking maneuver on the brakes on the run up Woodham Hill into the Club Chicane, as the riders
looked to complete the opening lap.

Fagan began to power his Pirelli-shod KTM 990 Super Duke into a healthy lead as Wood made an identical move on
Reilly the following lap to kickstart his challenge for the lead.  As Wood opened up the legs of the V-twin KTM, Reilly embarked on a furious race-long battle with Edmeades, Gault and Heal, that would see a last corner move at the notorious Club Chicane push both Reilly and Gault out of contention for the final podium position.  James Edmeades stole the final opportunity to claim third position and 16 valuable championship points.

Dave Wood closed the gap on Fagan’s lead to just 0.3s on the final lap but lost valuable ground as the pair battled to pass back-markers, settling for second at the chequered flag.  Alastair Fagan: “It wasn’t an easy race.  I managed to pull a 2 second gap but then Wood started to catch me again in the back-markers towards the end of the race.  Obviously I’m pleased that KTM gave me the opportunity to race today and I’m happy to take the win at my home circuit.”

HENDERSON YAMAHA R1 CUP
Jon Kirkham punched the air in delighted fashion as he exited Thruxton’s notorious Club chicane for the final time, crossing the finish line 6.569s ahead of the chasing field, in today’s inaugural Henderson R1 Cup race.

Earlier practice and qualification sessions had been held under cold, wet conditions and it looked as if the race would be hindered by poor weather for the second meeting in a row. However, race day (Sunday) warmed up and the track dried allowing the riders to run dry Metzeler tires for the first time in anger.

Starting from pole (1:22.104s; an 0.8s advantage over Gary Mason), a determined and comfortable looking Kirkham headed the field on lap one.  The Derbyshire rider steadily eked out and maintained a five second advantage for the duration of the fourteen lap event.

Behind Kirkham, it was a different story. Marty Nutt, Adrian Coates, Ben Wilson, Sean Emmett and Gary Mason diced for positions throughout.  Wilson suffered a technical mid-race after which cautionary oil flags were deployed.

The remaining four pursuants fought closely for the second position until Emmett managed to seize second place on the sixth.  Despite a superb divisive slingshot maneuver on Ulstermen Nutt and Coates at the end of lap nine, Mason was beaten to third by Nutt.  Coates completed the six-wheeler to finish fifth, twenty-four seconds ahead of road racing rookie Sam Warren, sixth.

Jon Kirkham: “I got away at the start because I knew everyone would come for me if I left it ‘til the end – but nobody showed me a wheel!”

Henderson Yamaha R1 Cup - Race Result
1 – Kirkham (Yamaha)
2 - Emmett (Yamaha)
3 – Nutt (Yamaha)
4 - Mason (Yamaha)
5 - Coates (Yamaha)

Championship Points
1. Kirkham 25
2. Emmett 20
3. Nutt 16
4. Mason 13
5. Coates 11

METZELER NATIONAL SUPERSTOCK 1000 CHAMPIONSHIP
Steve Brogan onboard the Honda UK Racing entered Fireblade took the victory by 0.1s ahead of Raceways Yamaha’s Jon Kirkham in a thrilling race held in near perfect conditions this afternoon.

Brogan converted his pole position into an early lead from Adrian Coates, Jon Kirkham, Peter Hickman and Marshall Neill.  As the race settled down, Coates was judged to have jumped the start and was given a ride thro’ penalty but failed to comply, leading to him receiving a disqualification later on lap seven during a Safety Car caution period for the recovery of Craig McClelland’s Kawasaki.  Until then, the Raceways rider would be frustrated by Coates for the early laps as the Yamahas battled and Kirkham feared Brogan would break free.

At the start of lap eight, the Audi R8 peeled off and battle resumed between the Japanese factories of Honda and Yamaha.  Marshall Neill filled the third position on his Suzuki ahead of Peter Hickman and Australian Cameron Donald.

The remaining laps produced a superbly choreographed display of Superstock racing as Kirkham repeatedly held Brogan out wide at Village, only to be outgunned a couple of corners later along Woodham Hill.  Despite his best efforts Kirkham was powerless to counter the sheer speed and racecraft of Brogan as the Merseyside rider held his nerve, outbraking Kirkham into the Club chicane on the last lap.

Finishing order saw Honda first, Yamaha second but Suzuki honours went to the Relentless entry of Donald third (and fastest lap 1:18.095s) after a thrilling contest with Marshall Neill.

Metzeler National Superstock 1000 Championship
1 – Brogan (Honda)
2 - Kirkham (Yamaha)
3 – Donald (Suzuki)
4 - Neill (Suzuki)
5 - Hickman (Kawasaki)

Championship Points
1. Brogan 25
2. Kirkham 20
3. Donald 16
4. Neill 13
5. Hickman 11

METZELER NATIONAL SUPERSTOCK 600 CHAMPIONSHIP
Reigning British 125 Champion Luke Jones made a dream start to his Superstock 600 campaign as he overcame a disappointing third row qualification position to take victory by 5.6 seconds and setting fastest lap (1m 20.603s) in the final race of the meeting, on the RDL UK1 entered Yamaha YZF R6.

Joel Morris started from pole and took the hole-shot as second placed Joe Burns flunked his start, falling back into the clutches of the field. MSS Kawasaki Juniors’ Jamie Hamilton followed Morris away in second from Chris Northover on the Team Haribo Yamaha.  Northover, along with Jones wasted little time stating their intentions for the ownership of podium positions as the pair took to the lead by lap two. Northover, having never raced at Thruxton previously, was unable to fend off the strong challenge from Jones despite a number of brave attempts.

Jones consolidated his lead over a closely matched Northover and Hamilton behind. The race was red flagged for Dan Smith’s fall at Cobb on lap ten, ending the race which had completed two-thirds distance.

Finishing order Jones, Northover, Morris would be a fitting and fair result as the series moves on to Oulton Park in two weeks time.

Metzeler National Superstock 600 Championship - Race Result
1 – Jones (Yamaha)
2 – Northover (Yamaha)
3 – Hamilton (Kawasaki)
4 - Morris (Suzuki)
5 – Haire (Yamaha)

Championship Points
1. Jones 25
2. Northover 20
3. Hamilton 16
4. Morris 13
5. Haire 11