Josh Brookes back on the box at Thruxton BSB

Leon Haslam wins Thruxton Race 1

Josh Brookes wins Race 2

Jason O’Halloran scores 6-6 results

Images by David Yeomans

Josh Brookes took the Thruxton Race 2 win, while Leon Haslam took the opener in the seventh round of the British Superbike Championship over the weekend.

Peter Hickman also put in a noteworthy performance, taking two podiums, despite a kidney infection which saw him hospitalised earlier in the weekend.

Leon Haslam left Thruxton on 280 points, leading the championship, from Jake Dixon on 198, while Josh Brookes sits third on 168 points.

Australian Jason O’Halloran also had a consistent weekend with two sixth place results, and currently sits 10th in the standings.

In Superstock 1000 Josh Elliott took the win, with Aussie Billy McConnell just off the podium in fourth. Brayden Elliott finished 24th. Ryan Vickers won the Superstock 600, and continues to hold the championship lead.

Aussie Sharni Pinfold tooth 12th in Race 1 of the MotoStar class, with a DNF in Race 2, and sits 14th in the standings.

British Superbikes Race 1

In the opening race Haslam ended his drought of victories at the high-speed Hampshire circuit after a hectic six-way battle that went down to the wire, as the JG Speedfit Kawasaki rider managed to hold off the challenge from a hard-charging Jake Dixon by 0.118s at the chequered flag.

The race had started with his JG Speedfit Kawasaki team-mate Luke Mossey having the upper hand on the opening laps to lead the pack ahead of Brookes and the Irwin brothers as several of the Showdown contenders slid out of contention with Bradley Ray, Danny Buchan and Michael Laverty all crashed together at the Chicane on the third lap, with Andrew Irwin high-siding out of contention.

At the front Mossey was leading the freight train of riders ahead of Dixon, Haslam, Brookes and Glenn Irwin with Jason O’Halloran also moving into contention. The Be Wiser Ducati rider then made a move on Brookes into the Chicane to put him ahead.

Haslam was on the hunt though and he moved into second by lap ten with a daring move on Dixon into the Chicane to put both of the JG Speedfit Kawasakis at the front of the pack. Dixon wasn’t giving up the position though and he fired a counter attack to move back into second to split the team-mates again.

Dixon then had the lead in his sights and he lead onto lap 14 ahead of Haslam and Mossey before Brookes moved into a podium position a lap later. The lead then changed again as Haslam moved ahead of Dixon at the Chicane with three laps to go.

The fight back continued with Dixon launching another attack for the front; sliding ahead with an incredible move at Church to take the position back from Haslam with Brookes ahead of O’Halloran and Hickman, who had only been released from hospital earlier today following an overnight stay due to a kidney infection.

Dixon had held the lead until the final lap when Haslam regained the advantage and despite his best efforts he couldn’t make another move with the pair separated by 0.118s at the finish line.

The battle for third kicked off with Hickman incredibly taking third place after a collision between Brookes and O’Halloran at the Chicane sent them both wide. Brookes crossed the line fourth ahead of Irwin and O’Halloran with Mossey claiming seventh.

Mason Law scored an impressive eighth place, his best finish in his rookie season for Team WD-40 Kawasaki ahead of Tarran Mackenzie from his back row start and second rookie Chrissy Rouse who completed the top ten.

British Superbike Championship, Thruxton, Race 1

1. Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki)
2. Jake Dixon (RAF Regular & Reserves Kawasaki) +0.118s
3. Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) +0.883s
4. Josh Brookes (McAMS Yamaha) +1.556s
5. Glenn Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati) +2.205s
6. Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing) +2.238s
7. Luke Mossey (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +6.255s
8. Mason Law (Team WD-40 Kawasaki) +9.671s
9. Tarran Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha) +9.873s
10. Chrissy Rouse (Movuno.com Halsall Racing Suzuki) +10.182s

British Superbikes Race 2

In race two Brookes was back on top as the McAMS Yamaha rider held off Hickman by just 0.305s to claim his third victory of the season. Dixon had taken the lead on the opening lap of the second race from Brookes, but Haslam was on the move and he had carved through into podium contention.

Dixon was holding on to the lead from Brookes and Haslam, but a lap later the championship leader moved ahead to grab second place on the JG Speedfit Kawasaki. Brookes was then under threat from O’Halloran and the pair once again traded blows with the ‘O’Show’ moving ahead.

However Hickman was on a mission and within two laps he had moved into fourth as the pack reshuffled again with Dixon leading Haslam, Brookes, Hickman and O’Halloran with Mackenzie also making his way up the order on the second McAMS Yamaha.

In typical Thruxton style the positions were constantly changing and on lap seven Brookes took the lead before Dixon regained it, but into the Chicane and across the line Brookes was back in front for McAMS Yamaha.

Brookes began to edge a gap but Hickman and Dixon were then scrapping for second and Dixon originally had the edge but on the eleventh lap it was his Smiths Racing BMW rival who had moved ahead. Haslam then moved third to push Dixon back to fourth with the leading five all in contention for the podium finish.

Brookes held on despite a late race surge from Hickman to claim his third victory of the season ahead of Hickman and Dixon, who made a last lap move on Haslam to snatch the final podium finish in the second race.

Josh Brookes

“It all went to plan in race two; I was even cautious about doing a burn out after the last time here! It has actually been a difficult weekend for us; we often expect to go good here and we played our cards a bit wrong in race one; I was running out of top speed and the bike was on the limiter and people were overtaking me into the Chicane all the time so I broke up my race. In the second race we changed the gearing and I had to manage it better in the corners but the combined package was a better compromise. I am thrilled that McAMS Yamaha can celebrate another victory and it is so important. I am desperate to claw the points back on Leon and that is what we need to keep doing now week-in-week-out.”

Peter Hickman

“I only got discharged from hospital at 12 noon today so to be standing on the podium at 2pm was pretty unreal! I felt a bit better today and got back to the circuit and gave it my best shot. I was a long way back at the beginning of race one, but I kept chipping away and gradually the front group came back to me. I had a bit of luck on the final lap after Josh and Jason came together but we deserved a bit of luck this weekend. In the second race, we were battling too much among ourselves which allowed Josh to make a break, but I had a good rhythm and got second place. We needed a good weekend after a poor start to the season and that’s what we got so to be right back in Showdown contention is just what I wanted.”

Jake Dixon

“I did a lot of homework during practice and qualifying to put myself in the strongest position possible on race day and whilst there were all manner of tyre combinations out there, the soft tyre worked best for me and was what I stuck with. I felt comfortable leading the race but each time Leon got into my draft and came by, the bike kept hitting the limiter which held me back a bit. I thought I’d done enough on the final lap and had squeezed him enough at the final chicane to take the win but it wasn’t to be. I wasn’t happy finishing third in the second race but I was pleased to pick up another podium credit and even more pleased that Leon didn’t pick up any. Josh and Peter (Hickman) had a little bit more rear grip than me and for some reason we seem to struggle a bit in the higher temperatures. The team have done a mega job all weekend to give me a bike to fight for the race wins and we’re still in an extremely strong position in the Championship so roll on the next round.”

Mackenzie scored his best finish in fifth place ahead of O’Halloran with Tommy Bridewell equalling his best result of the season with another strong seventh position for the local Moto Rapido Ducati team.

Jason O’Halloran

“It’s been a really positive weekend for us and although the results say two sixth places, in the first race we were up into third and coming into the final chicane we had a coming together with another rider and I ended up finishing sixth. We then got another strong sixth in race two. It’s a massive step forward from Brands, it’s only two weeks, but it’s been two weeks of hard work to improve, get fitter, stronger and get the ankle better to be able to do more laps on a Friday, which we managed here and what has helped us today. The boys have worked fantastic all weekend and the Fireblade has been great – we showed that in the first race by entering the last chicane with the leaders, where at Brands I didn’t see which way they went! We’ve made a good step and I’m pleased with today’s effort, although we want more than sixth I think from where we’ve come from in such a short time, we should all be happy with what we’ve achieved.”

Mossey was able to get the better of Glenn Irwin in the closing stages of the race to score ninth place with Law completing an incredible weekend with another top ten finish for Team WD-40 Kawasaki in his rookie season.

Glenn Irwin

“We tried everything we could all weekend but whilst it was clear from qualifying that we had pace for one lap, doing it for a full race distance was extremely difficult and we struggled. It wasn’t through a lack of trying on anyone’s part and we constantly tried settings to improve the balance of the bike. We’ve suffered the same fate for two years in a row now so it’s hugely frustrating. On the plus side, we haven’t lost much ground in terms of the championship position and we’ve gone well at Cadwell Park recently, so I’ll be aiming to get back on the podium there.”

The eighth round of the 2018 Bennetts British Superbike Championship take place at Cadwell Park on August 17/18/19.

British Superbike Championship, Thruxton, Race 2

1. Josh Brookes (McAMS Yamaha)
2. Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) +0.305s
3. Jake Dixon (RAF Regular & Reserves Kawasaki) +1.727s
4. Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +1.854s
5. Tarran Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha) +2.237s
6. Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing) +7.025s
7. Tommy Bridewell (Moto Rapido Ducati) +8.465s
8. Luke Mossey (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +9.070s
9. Glenn Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati) +9.525s
10. Mason Law (Team WD-40 Kawasaki) +11.453s

British Superbike Championship standings after Thruxton

1. Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) 280
2. Jake Dixon (RAF Regular & Reserves Kawasaki) 198
3. Josh Brookes (McAMS Yamaha) 168
4. Glenn Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati) 163
5. Bradley Ray (Buildbase Suzuki) 119
6. Danny Buchan (FS-3 Racing Kawasaki) 111
   …10. Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing) 86

Pirelli National Superstock 1000

Josh Elliott took the first win for the OMG Racing team in an epic 16 lap Pirelli National Superstock 1000 battle. Taylor Mackenzie led at the end of the opening lap, but it was a five rider battle throughout the race as Mackenzie and Elliott were joined by Alex Olsen, Lee Jackson and Billy McConnell.

Trading places throughout, it came down to a last corner move as Elliott slid past Jackson to claim the victory whilst Mackenzie was able to draft past Jackson by the flag to claim second. McConnell secured fourth ahead of Championship leader Keith Farmer. Joe Collier was sixth whilst Rollo, Rutter, Jeacock and Hipwell completed the top ten.

Taylor Mackenzie

“I’m really happy to finish second and on the podium and just tried to use my head and save my tyre as best I could during the race. It wasn’t easy as Josh was setting a very good pace and I needed to get by Billy McConnell in the closing stages to give myself a chance. I could have done with one more lap to have a go for the lead but it was good to get Lee on the run in to the line and also be the first BMW across the line. It’s really nice to give the team a podium finish as a payback for everything they’ve done for me at the last two rounds.”

Pirelli National Superstock 1000 Race

1. Josh ELLIOTT Suzuki – OMG Racing UK LTD
2. Taylor MACKENZIE BMW – Bathams Racing +0.200
3. Lee JACKSON Kawasaki – FS-3 Racing Kawasaki +0.235
4. Billy McCONNELL Suzuki – Buildbase Suzuki +0.474
5. Keith FARMER BMW – Tyco BMW Motorrad +2.130
6. Joe COLLIER Aprilia – EHA / In Competition Racing +5.248
7. Lewis ROLLO Ducati – +10.074
8. Michael RUTTER BMW – Bathams Racing +15.604
9. Leon JEACOCK Suzuki – Geo-Davies & Smirk Racing +16.386
10. Dean HIPWELL BMW – Selective Networks +16.567
11. George STANLEY Suzuki – BWSR +19.835
    …24. Brayden ELLIOTT Suzuki – No Bull Racing BE51

Pirelli National Superstock 1000 Standings

1. Keith FARMER 186
2. Joe COLLIER 172
3. Billy McCONNELL 171
4. Josh ELLIOTT 106
5. Lee JACKSON 104
6. Alex OLSEN 84.5
7. Andy REID 79
8. Alastair SEELEY 69
9. Chrissy ROUSE 68
10. Michael RUTTER 48

Pirelli National Superstock 600

Ryan Vickers extended his Championship lead in the Pirelli National Superstock 600 class with a dominant win at Thruxton.

Grabbing the holeshot, the youngster did not have things all his own way as he was pushed by Korie McGreevy and Aaron Clifford during the early stages however both riders would crash out of contention leaving Vickers to take the victory by 5.924s. Milo Ward secured second place whilst it was a last lap battle for the final rostrum position, eventually seeing Ben Luxton take third.

Pirelli National Superstock 600 Race

1. Ryan VICKERS Yamaha – Mototechniks Yamaha
2. Milo WARD Kawasaki – G & S Racing +5.924
3. Ben LUXTON Kawasaki – G & S Racing +11.981
4. Cameron LEE Yamaha – Allied Motorsport +12.161
5. Mark CLAYTON Yamaha – KSM Racing +12.696
6. Aaron CLARKE Yamaha – Draper Racing +12.913
7. Joe SHELDON-SHAW Kawasaki – Via Moto Racing +13.043
8. TJ TOMS Kawasaki – Squidge Racing +13.389
9. Caolán IRWIN Yamaha – Irwin Racing +15.393
10. Kevin KEYES Kawasaki – Team #109 +34.275

Pirelli National Superstock 600 Standings

1. Ryan VICKERS 150
2. Joe SHELDON-SHAW 100
3. Kevin KEYES 90
4. Aaron CLARKE 89
5. Aaron CLIFFORD 78
6. Milo WARD 76
7. Grant NEWSTEAD 67
8. Caolán IRWIN 54
9. Cameron LEE 48
10. Mark CLAYTON 47

Hel Performance Motostar Race 1

Jack Scott took victory in a dramatic opening Hel Performance British Motostar race that saw series leader Jake Archer crash out on the final corner. Storm Stacey grabbed the holeshot, but it was a seven rider battle at the front as the riders slipstreamed each other, trading places throughout the 12 laps race.

Coming into the final chicane it was anyone’s race and a collision between Brandon Paasch and Jake Archer saw the series leader crash out of contention. Scott eventually took the win ahead of Stacey and Paasch. Taylor Moreton took victory in the Standard class ahead of Rodriguez and Seabright.

Scott was later penalised 1s for ‘exceeding track limits’, regulating him to second place and making Stacey the Race 1 winner. Sharni Pinfold was just outside the Top 10 in 12th.

Hel Performance Motostar Race 1

1. Storm STACEY KTM – FPW Racing
2. Jack SCOTT KTM – City Lifting / RS Racing +0.111
3. Edmund BEST KTM – SymCirrus Motorsport +0.829
4. Asher DURHAM Mahindra – Microlise Cresswell Racing +1.038
5. Edward RENDELL KTM FTR – Banks Racing +1.181
6. Chris TAYLOR Mahindra – Microlise Cresswell Racing +16.520
7. Brandon PAASCH Mahindra – Microlise Cresswell Racing +20.098
8. Jack NIXON KTM – Santander Salt +21.368
9. Taylor MORETON Honda NSF – Major Player Marketing +22.179
10. Eugene McMANUS KTM – RS Racing +30.883
11. Victor RODRIGUEZ Honda NSF – GA Competition +31.195
12. Sharni PINFOLD KTM – RS Racing +35.135

Hel Performance Motostar Race 2

Jack Scott took the Race 2 Hel Performance Motostar victory by 5.383 seconds from Asher Durham and Jake Archer at Thruxton. Scott grabbed the hole shot and instantly pulled a gap on the chasing pack, maintaining the lead until the flag, collecting his second victory of the season.

Asher Durham picked up second place on the final lap after pulling a move on the Championship leader Jake Archer at the final chicane.

Hel Performance Motostar Race 2

1. Jack SCOTT KTM – City Lifting / RS Racing +18:53.555
2. Asher DURHAM Mahindra – Microlise Cresswell Racing +5.383
3. Jake ARCHER KTM – City Lifting / RS Racing +5.458
4. Storm STACEY KTM – FPW Racing +6.152
5. Edward RENDELL KTM FTR – Banks Racing +6.317
6. Edmund BEST KTM – SymCirrus Motorsport +8.180
7. Jack NIXON KTM – Santander Salt +22.829
8. Brandon PAASCH Mahindra – Microlise Cresswell Racing +22.981
9. Chris TAYLOR Mahindra – Microlise Cresswell Racing +23.066
10. Eugene McMANUS KTM – RS Racing +32.291
    …DNF. Sharni PINFOLD

Hel Performance Motostar Standings

1. Jake ARCHER 211
2. Storm STACEY 174
3. Asher DURHAM 156
4. Jack SCOTT 140
5. Edward RENDELL 100
6. Brandon PAASCH 92
7. Edmund BEST 81
8. Jack NIXON 64
9. Eugene McMANUS 63
10. Elliot LODGE 50
    …14. Sharni PINFOLD 27