SMART POWERS TO POLE
17 July 2004 - THINK! British Superbikes

THINK! British Superbike Championship, Round 9, Mallory Park

Scott Smart grabbed his first ever pole start in the THINK! British Superbike Championship, but it took a scorching lap of the short, but demanding Mallory Park circuit to break the challenge of Tommy Hill who had earlier set a frantic pace.

Joining them on the front row of the grid are the leading duo in the title stakes, with John Reynolds, the twice former champion, who holds a comfortable 38 points advantage, marginally faster than Michael Rutter who escaped injury in a tumble midway through the session.

Smart was delighted. ''Fantastic - the bike was great, though it was looking a bit dodgy at one point. Tommy had just pipped me to top place, but I plugged away and grabbed it back,'' smiled the Hawk Kawasaki rider, who is aiming to add a third victory to his seasonal tally.

His lap of the 1.39 mile Leicestershire circuit was in a time of 51.283s, barely a third of a second faster than 19 year old Lingfield rider who was enjoying the best qualifying performance of his ''rookie'' year.

Reynolds recorded a best lap of 51.659s aboard his Rizla Suzuki, to hold off Rutter, who, riding his spare bike after crashing at the chicane, closed in on the leading pack. ''I lost the front end - I was pushing too hard into the corner and it went away from me without warning. It was my fault,'' admitted Rutter.

With the season entering its final third,HM Plant Honda rider Rutter, who lives nearby to the circuit, needs strong results: ''It''s important for me to finish on the podium in these races, and win them, if I''m going to catch Reynolds, but I still feel confident about my chances.''

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