Jonathan Rea dominated opening practice at Croft circuit

Gregorio Lavilla had a problem with one of the sensors so he had to switch bikes. © GSE Racing. The Red Bull Honda rider dominated opening practice of the tenth round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at the Croft circuit in North Yorkshire. Rea´s best lap of the 2.127 mile circuit came in 1 20"018, nine tenths down the record and as the 19 year old from Ballyclare is promising, there´s more to come as the weekend progresses: “I enjoy riding the circuit – it suits my style and there is no reason why I cannot go well in the races here.”

Rea came close to victory at Knockhill, and he is relaxed and confident in his approach to these races and that could spell problems for the three riders, Ryuichi Kiyonari, Leon Haslam and reigning champion Gregorio Lavilla, who are separated by only 14 points as they go into the final third of the season. Leon Haslam closed within a quarter of a second of Rea at the top of the leaderboard, and like the Red Bull Honda rider, he is desperate for a first taste of the winner's champagne this season: “It is frustrating. I've been well on the pace in qualifying, but then in the races not been able to match that, having a bit of bad luck at times. I have to score well here, and then the final three tracks we race are on well suited to me.”

The 22 year old Derbyshire rider had a best lap of 1' 20"282secs, comfortably clear of Kiyonari, aboard the HM Plant Honda, who ran some fourth tenths of a second down. He is eager for a repeat of his victory of last season here, to edge a little closer to becoming the first Japanese rider to take the British crown.

Shane Byrne, Rizla Suzuki's former champion, set fourth best time, 1m'21"155secs, in the closing seconds of the session, pushing Lavilla back into fifth place: “My fastest lap came quite easily. How did I go faster? I simply didn't brake as much and set a better time. I tried both of my race bikes and think we are in a strong position for the weekend. One bike is set up just how I want and handling very well. The other bike has the most amazing brakes. I want the brakes transferred on to my number one bike and then I'll be flying.” (Suzuki Racing)

Gregorio Lavilla, who also took a victory here in the corresponding round last year, is battling to end a lean spell in which he has failed to score in three of the previous six races. The Spaniard came 5th in both sessions recording his fastest time of 1'21"201 in second practice.

Having switched bikes late in the second session Lavilla was pleased with his performance despite being slightly off race pace: “The start of practice was ok although the bike is not feeling like it did during the test. We have made some changes today however towards the end of this afternoon I had a problem with one of the sensors so I had to switch bikes. I have now tried some different settings and I know what I am comfortable with for tomorrow. The conditions were poor today and we have been using a different tyre to the one we used in the test here last month so that has also affected my performance. I know I can go much quicker and that gives me confidence for the rest of the weekend." (Airwaves Ducati)
Qualifying for Round 10 of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship begins tomorrow, Saturday 12th August, at 3pm.

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