PODIUM JOY FOR SHAKEY AT OULTON
08 May 2007 - Stobart Honda

Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport rider Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne picked up his second podium of the season amidst changeable weather conditions in round four of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Oulton Park yesterday.

Aboard the VK sponsored Honda Fireblade, the 30 year old Londoner followed up a sixth place finish in race one with a third place in the second race as the rain clouds threatened overhead.

In the opening race Byrne was in the leading bunch and just missed out on a possible podium but made amends in the second race as he fended off Championship leader Gregorio Lavilla (Airwaves Ducati) for the final podium place on the last lap.

Meanwhile rookie team mate Tom Sykes continued his impressive start to the campaign with another pair of solid points scoring rides at the Cheshire track. He too was only a fraction off a podium in the opening race, finishing in fifth, and briefly led race two until ending up in sixth place after another battling performance as he once again fended off a number of more illustrious rivals.

As a result of the successful weekend Sykes lies in sixth position in the Championship, with Byrne in seventh going into the next round in two weeks time whereby Shakey is looking for his first win for the Paul Bird team and Sykes his first podium.

Shane Byrne: “I’m a lot happier with that second race. In the first race the bike was good through the corners but not on the braking so we made some tweaks for race two and it was much better. I made hard work of passing Tommy Hill so it maybe could have been a second or a win. I’m looking forward to Snetterton now, its one place where you have to be brave on the brakes so if we have plenty of top speed there’s no reason why we can’t be up there again.”

Tom Sykes: “It’s been a good weekend with more points and solid finishes and most of all I’ve gained a bit more experience. I got the holeshot in the second race which was quite nice and I had a little smile on my face. I was up there riding with the top riders who have so much more experience and I just didn’t quite have the pace of the front guys but it’s only my fourth Superbike race so I’m happy enough. The team have been superb and I think they are happy with my progress.”

Paul Bird: “It’s been a fantastic day, both riders have done well and we are challenging for wins and in the thick of the action. Thanks to the boys for their hard work, and a big thanks to the sponsors also. We just need to improve each weekend now and we’re looking forward to Snetterton.”

The next round of the Bennetts British Championship takes place next weekend at Snetterton, Norfolk in two weeks time (18th to 20th May).

Race 1 Result

1, Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) 27m29.245s, 2, Leon Haslam (Ducati) +0.219s, 3, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) +0.504s, 4, Jonathan Rea (Honda) +1.843s, 5, Tom Sykes (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +2.113s, 6, Shane Byrne (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +2.505s, 7, Cal Crutchlow (Suzuki) +9.310s, 8, Leon Camier (Honda) +11.524s, 9, Karl Harris (Honda) +19.092s, 10, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +26.176s.

Race 2 Result

1, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 27m33.097s, 2, Leon Haslam (Ducati) +2.177s, 3, Shane Byrne (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +3.563s, 4, Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) +4.041s, 5, Jonathan Rea (Honda) +7.403s, 6, Tom Sykes (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) +7.664s, 7, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +7.786s, 8, Leon Camier (Honda) +13.860s, 9, Chris Walker (Suzuki) +31.363s, 10, Dean Thomas (Suzuki) +32.393s.

Bennetts British Superbike Championship Positions after Round 8

1, Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) 169pts

2, Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 140pts

3, Jonathan Rea (Honda) 109pts

4, Leon Haslam (Ducati) 104pts

5, Leon Camier (Honda) 96pts

6, Tom Sykes (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) 80pts

7, Shane Byrne (Stobart Vent Axia Motorsport Honda) 71pts

8, Chris Walker (Suzuki) 62pts

9, Tommy Hill (Yamaha) 52pts

10, Michael Rutter (Kawasaki) 45pts

Round 1 – 7th to 9th April – Brands Hatch GP, Kent

Round 2 – 14th/15th April – Thruxton, Hants

Round 3 – 27th/29th April – Silverstone, Northants

Round 4 – 5th/7th May – Oulton Park, Cheshire

Round 5 – 18th/20th May – Snetterton, Norfolk

Round 6 – 15th/17th June – Mondello Park, Co Kildare

Round 7 – 30th June/1st July – Knockhill, Fife

Round 8 – 13th/15th July – Oulton Park, Cheshire

Round 9 – 20th/22nd July – Mallory Park, Leics

Round 10 – 10th/12th August – Croft, North Yorkshire

Round 11 – 25th/27th August – Cadwell Park, Lincolnshire

Round 12 – 21st/23rd September – Donington Park, Leics

Round 13 – 12th/14th October – Brands Hatch Indy, Kent

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