Byrne remains upbeat
Shane Byrne did his best to stay positive after crashing at Brands Hatch on Easter Monday.
Having missed the opening round of the British Superbike Championship due to injury, Byrne was back on the bike at the Brands Indy circuit and fastest in testing.
The five-time champion started Monday’s first race from the second row of the grid and made steady progress through the field to finish fourth.
Byrne made swifter progress in race two, the Be Wiser Ducati man running third by the start of lap 24.
But as he entered Clearways, Byrne lost the front end and crashed out of the race – at least avoiding injury.
Luke Mossey won both races for JG Speedfit Kawasaki.
Byrne has 13 points to his name and is 14th in the standings ahead of round three at Oulton Park from April 29 to May 1.
He said: “I’m looking at the weekend with the glass very much being half full as there are a lot of positives to take away.
“It was a difficult weekend and I’ve got to say the first race was hard work as I was suffering a lot with wheelspin but the team turned things around and the bike I was riding in the second race was probably the best bike we’ve ever had in terms of set-up.
“Conditions suited us and I was comfortable with the pace I was running and I felt it was only going to be a matter of time before I hit the front.
“Once I got by Leon Haslam for third, I knew he’d be fighting back straightaway and so defended my line with a tighter line than normal going into Clearways.
“Unfortunately, I caught the bumps and while I tried my utmost to save it I ended up upside-down.
“That’s racing and while there’s still a long way to go, we need to start winning races.”