Double podium finish for Carrick’s Reid in Superstock second round
LOCAL riders had a tremendous weekend during t he second round of the British Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch Indy Circuit.
There was a double podium including a win in Superstock 1000 for Carrick’s Andy Reid.
Fellow townsman Glenn Irwin (PBM Be Wiser Ducati) and Toome’s Michael Laverty (Tyco BMW) took second and third in a wet second Superbike race yesterday, while Aghadowey rider Eunan McGlinchey took a win and two seconds in extremely close finishes in Junior Supersport to lead the championship.
Jack Kennedy did the double in Supersport, Adam McLean on his debut finished third in the Superstock 600cc race while Keith Farmer was second in the opening Superstock race on the Tyco BMW, but was forced out of race two with a technical issue while in contention for at least a podium.
Riding the EHA/In Competition Aprilia RSV4, Reid (above) opened the weekend with a win in the 24-lap Superstock race on Saturday, three-quarters of a second ahead of Keith Farm- er at the finish. Seventh past the chequered flag was Alastair Seeley, but he was handed sixth after Josh Elliott was excluded for failing the post-race technical inspection.
McConnell won yesterday with Reid third, ahead of team mate Joe Collier, with Seeley in fifth and Elliott eighth.
Reid said: “We just didn’ t quite have the set-up today to take the win, but this championship is all about riding smart and today we took third and some strong points.
“The win on Saturday saw me take back-toback wins on t he Aprilia after Donington, an indication of the strong package the EHA/In Competition team have given me.” Superbike race one yesterday was a two-way battle between 20-year-old Bradley Ray and the six-time BSB champion Shakey Byrne. Ray, on the Buildbase Suzuki, led from lap one to the penultimate lap of 30 when he made a slight error going into Paddock Hill bend running wide allowing his race-long shadow Byrne through to take his 85 th BSB victory.
Irwin fought back from well down to claim seventh at the chequered flag, half a second ahead of front row starter Laverty.
Irwin and Laverty were embroiled in a three-way battle for race two, re-started after rain that got heavier as the race progressed. On the 20th lap of 22 Irwin got past Laverty, who led in the mid-part of the race, at Druids and Leon Haslam then relegated the Tyco BMW to third at Graham Hill Bend.
Haslam snatched the win over Irwin by 0.367sec with Laverty a further 0.231sec back in third place.
Lisburn’s Carl Phillips rode his best race to date on the Gearlink Kawasaki, relishing the conditions to finish a creditable 10th, his first Superbike points of the season.
McGlinchey has been the revelation of the season in the new Junior Supersport class. He won race one by 0.070sec, was 0.41sec behind race two winner Brian Hart and a similar distance second to Elliott Pinson in race three.
Jack Kennedy never put a wheel wrong to win a restarted Supersport race yesterday, having also won Saturday’s sprint race. Namesake Robert Kennedy (no relation) finished a creditable sixth yesterday while it was also sixth for Eugene McManus in Motostar yesterday having crashed out of the first race.