DUTCH DRAMA AS BROOKES TAKES ASSEN DOUBLE

Race Review

Josh Brookes attacked the Assen event from the off, topping the timesheets in every free practice and qualifying session. In the final Q3 qualifying session Brookes went 0.4 quicker than his nearest rival with a stunning 1:35.971 lap for pole position.

Race one was held under dark skies but the rain held off as Brookes stormed into the lead followed by Ellison. Byrne had a race long battle for third with Michael Laverty and John Hopkins. Brookes took a new lap record of 1:36.904 on lap five and was never headed, winning comfortably by six seconds from Ellison. Laverty managed to hold off Byrne for his first podium of the season.

Race two was a tense affair as light rain caused a delayed start to give teams more time to make a potential win or lose tyre decision. Linfoot on Diablo Rain full wet tyres pulled out a three second lead but as the track dried he was overtaken by the leaders before dropping back but continuing to circulate, to finish the race on the same lap as the winner. Luke Mossey and Richard Cooper both lead the race which ran at slower lap times due to the conditions, before the usual contenders of Brookes and Ellison powered through the pack to finish 1-2. Byrne had a frustrating weekend to finish 4th and 5th and lose ground on his arch rival Brookes. The series moves to the fast and wide Silverstone circuit in two weeks time.

Pirelli View

Pirelli UK Racing Manager Jason Griffiths commented, “Assen certainly lived up to expectations and provided a feast of top notch racing. The performance of our tyres today was very pleasing with the majority of riders choosing to use the softer SC0 solution which once again proved its amazing versatility, dealing with an abrasive surface and a track temperature of a relatively cool 19 degrees. The second Superbike race was a fantastic spectacle and especially pleasing in terms of tyre performance. The SC0 solution coped with the damp conditions in the early part of the race which certainly impacted on tyre temperature but still allowed Josh Brookes to set the fastest lap of the race on his final circuit. We’ll now return to base and begin our preparations for the Silverstone round.”

MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship, Assen

Race one result:
1.Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha)
2.James Ellison (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +6.757s
3.Michael Laverty (Tyco BMW) +8.425s
4.Shane Byrne (PBM Kawasaki) +8.811s
5.John Hopkins (Lloyds British Moto Rapido Ducati) +10.071s
6.Richard Copper (Buildbase BMW) +13.145s
7.Christian Iddon (Bennetts Suzuki) +16.901s
8.Tommy Bridewell (Tyco BMW) +18.118s
9.Peter Hickman (RAF Reserves BMW) +21.541s
10.Danny Buchan (Be Wiser Kawasaki) +22.533s

Race two result:

1.Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha)
2.James Ellison (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +0.615s
3.Luke Mossey (Quattro Plant Kawasaki) +3.636s
4.Richard Cooper (Buildbase BMW) +4.365s
5.Shane Byrne (PBM Kawasaki) +4.548s
6.Christian Iddon (Bennetts Suzuki) +6.052s
7.Jack Kennedy (Team WD-40 Kawasaki) +13.939s
8.Chris Walker (Be Wiser Kawasaki) +18.814s
9.Michael Laverty (Tyco BMW) +20.968s
10.Jakub Smrz (Milwaukee Yamaha) +21.096s

MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship standings:
1. Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha) 603
2. Shane Byrne (PBM Kawasaki) 575
3. James Ellison (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) 562
4. Michael Laverty (Tyco BMW) 523
5. Tommy Bridewell (Tyco BMW) 515
6. Dan Linfoot (Honda Racing) 509