Team Suzuki Press Office – April 8. Tyco Suzuki’s Josh Brookes is on Pole Position for tomorrow’s opening round of the British Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch in Kent.
In treacherous conditions, Australian Brookes hooked-up the quickest time in both Q2 and Q3 on his GSX-R1000 Superbike, giving TAS Racing’s new title sponsor Tyco Security Products its first ever pole spot.
Team mate and 2011 British Supersport Champion Alastair Seeley narrowly missed-out on Q3 and will start the opening race from row four in 13th position.
Josh Brookes:
“I’m sure everyone else will say the same: it was horrible conditions to ride in, but once I got a feel for the track, it generated a bit of confidence. In the first session there were damp patches and I was waiting for the front to tuck, but in Q2 and Q3 with ‘Wets’ in I felt even more confident and wasn’t worried about running off the dry line. I just hope there was some element of entertainment out there for the fans in the rain as on the bike it was pretty scary. It’s great to post the first pole position slot of the year for Suzuki and all our new sponsors.”
Alastair Seeley:
“It’s always disappointing not to make Q3 but the conditions were tough today and with the bike ‘walking around’ on me in and out of the turns I didn’t feel we could push any harder. We just need a good start tomorrow and hopefully race one will give me a better grid position for the second race.”
Philip Neill – Team Manager:
“After all the hard work over the winter we couldn’t ask for a more positive start to the season. These are morale-boosting moments that also get you through the tough days. There are no points to be had in Qualifying but Pole Position demonstrates the quality of the Tyco Suzuki GSX-R1000 package. Josh has been in a great frame of mind all weekend, which is good to see; it has been a great team effort. It was a little disappointing for Alastair today as we know he is capable of much more, but we just have to accept that he has yet to find the correct set-up.”
BSB Qualifying Results: 1 Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki), 2 Jon Kirkham (Honda), 3 Shane Byrne (Kawasaki), 4 Tristan Palmer (Honda), 5 Freddy Foray (Kawasaki), 6 Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha), 7 Tommy Bridewell (BMW), 8 Michael Rutter (Kawasaki), 9 Stuart Easton (Kawasaki), 10 Luca Scassa (Honda). 13 Alastair Seeley (Tyco Suzuki).
