AND TAKE CHAMPIONSHIP LEAD
The HM Plant Honda team celebrated a double podium finish in both races at round nine of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship as Josh Brookes and Ryuichi Kiyonari took the team to their 24th podium finish of the season.
In the opening race Josh just missed out on the win, but a determined effort in race two saw him put an impressive move on both Tommy Hill and team-mate Kiyo to take the lead and win the second red-flagged race. Kiyo’s double third place finishes puts him joint championship leader as the championship reaches the Showdown over the final three rounds on 526 points with Tommy Hill, whilst Josh is just one point adrift in third overall. Meanwhile in the Metzeler National Superstock 1000 Championship, Steve Plater returned to action and battled to a twelfth place finish.
Kiyonari said: “That wasn’t a bad first race for me; to finish on the podium was a good result after not getting a very good start. I had to get past a couple of riders and then this took time. Michael Rutter was difficult to pass and I got faster once I had clear track but the gap was too much to close to Josh and Tommy. I was disappointed that I couldn’t get the win in the second race, but I am happy to have taken two podium finishes as it was important for the championship especially now as we get ready for the Showdown. We made some changes for race two and I was feeling more confident but it was another tough race. Josh and Tommy just had that little bit more speed in certain places, but I am happy to be joint championship leader and I want to come back out at Croft ready to win.”
Brookes said: “It wasn’t a bad first race for me and the HM Plant Honda team; I had a good start and knew Tommy was behind me. He then came past me and then I tried to stay with him, but I just couldn’t get it back. He was faster at Hall Bends and some of the other parts of the track but for race two we made the bike stiffer at both ends and the balance was good so I knew we had a good shot. I didn’t get the perfect start and I was behind Kiyo and Tommy, but our pace was much faster than race one and I put a pass on both of them through the Hall Bends section and I knew Tommy would try and have a go back, but I thought we had the pace to hold him off and then the red flag came out. It feels good to win again as that was always the goal and now we focus on the Showdown.”
Steve said: "That's got a big weight off my shoulders, being out there and taking part in a race. There was no pressure, the HM Plant Honda team said go out there and enjoy it. The big relief is to finish the race, get one under my belt, and I am very happy to have done that even with twelfth place. There was a group just in front of me in the race and in places I was faster than them, but in other more physical places like the Gooseneck, the Chicane and Hall Bends where I was a bit tired, they were faster than me. So, I settled for what I had and I am happy."
Team Manager Havier Beltran concluded: “It has been a fantastic weekend for the HM Plant Honda team; to have both riders on the podium in both of the races is always the goal and both Josh and Kiyo achieved that. Kiyo was a bit disappointed not to have won, but he has the title lead with Tommy going into the Showdown so the podiums today were vital. For Josh he was so impressive and I have never seen passes from the Mountain through to Hall Bends like he did and that win was deserved. The whole team is now looking forward to the Showdown and fighting for the championship title. For Steve he had a solid weekend on his return and now he has made his return he will be looking to come back stronger at Croft.”
