Reigning British Superbike Champion Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne didn’t win all three of the races held at Oulton Park this weekend, but he won the second of the three and that was the 50th of his career. It also clinched him a spot in the end-of-season Showdown.
Three different riders won the three races – James Ellison, Byrne, and JHosh Brookes – and three different manufacturers also celebrated victories: Yamaha, Kawasaki, Suzuki.
Riding the Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki ZX-10R, Byrne qualified second for the weekend’s tripleheader and then finished second to Milwaukee Yamaha’s James Ellison in Saturday’s race – just .10 of a second behind at the flag.
After setting the fastest lap of the race on Saturday, Byrne started race two from pole position and took the lead on the eighth lap, keeping first Ellison and then Josh Brookes at bay to take his ninth win of the season. And the 50th of his career.
In the final race of the busy weekend, the 36-year-old had to give second best to Brookes and his Tyco Suzuki, but the points gained from the three races saw him extend his lead in the title race.
“It’s great to have finally got the 50th career win and with a large percentage of those having come on Paul’s [Bird] bikes; I’d like to dedicate that to him,” Byrne said. “He’s been such an integral part of my career and it’s great to be in the position we’re in this year. The races were tough all weekend as we were all so evenly matched, Saturday’s being a prime example where James [Ellison] was quicker in the first part of the lap and I was quicker in the second half. He could edge away to begin with so all I could do was close the gap without actually getting close enough to make a pass.
“That was in my mind today and I wanted to hit the front as soon as possible and stay smooth, which is how it panned out in the first race even if I couldn’t pull away. I tried to adopt the same strategy in the final race, but I used too much of my tire in the first part of the race so that when Josh [Brookes] came by, I didn’t have a lot to give. We’ve ended the weekend with a win and two seconds so it’s been a good meeting for us.”
New Yorker PJ Jacobsen finished seventh in race one and sixth in race two. He suffered a DNF in the third of the three races.
Tommy Aquino, meanwhile, continued to impress, the Californian finishing on the podium for the second straight time in the 1000cc Superstock series. Aquino rode his Team WD40 Kawasaki to third – just. .454 of a second from the winner.
2013 British Superbike Series
Oulton Park, Results, August 10-11, 2013
Saturday Race
1: James Ellison (Milwaukee Yamaha)
2: Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) +0.186s
3: Alex Lowes (Samsung Honda) +1.923s
4: Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki) +4.326s
5: Tommy Bridewell (Halsall Racing Kawasaki) +5.010s
6: Ryuichi Kiyonari (Samsung Honda) +9.960s
Sunday Race One
1: Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki)
2: Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki) +0.173s
3: Ryuichi Kiyonari (Samsung Honda) +0.932s
4: Tommy Bridewell (Halsall Racing Kawasaki) +9.532s
5: Jon Kirkham (Buildbase BMW) +15.772s
6: PJ Jacobsen (Tyco Suzuki) +18.343s
Sunday Race Two
1: Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki)
2: Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) +0.246s
3: Alex Lowes (Samsung Honda) +0.836s
4: James Ellison (Milwaukee Yamaha) +1.070s
5: Tommy Bridewell (Halsall Racing Kawasaki) +1.237s
6: James Westmoreland (Buildbase BMW) +18.465s
Championship Standings
1: Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) 297
2: Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki) 268
3: Alex Lowes (Samsung Honda) 243
4: James Ellison (Milwaukee Yamaha) 158
5: Ryuichi Kiyonari (Samsung Honda) 142
6: Jon Kirkham (Buildbase BMW) 126
