DOUBLE PODIUM FOR SICK BYRNE AT OULTON
 Shane
‘Shakey’ Byrne scored brilliant second and third
place podium finishes in today’s Bank Holiday fourth
round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Oulton
Park while racing with a stomach bug that left him feeling
barely strong enough to stand.
Shakey was given a saline drip by doctors before climbing
aboard his Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000 for the first race. Despite
feeling weak he showed his determination to lead the race
and finish in second place to score the team’s first
podium of the season.
In the second event an exhausted Shakey battled for third
place for the entire race. On the last lap he clashed with
Honda’s Jonathan Rea and both riders went off track.
Rea missed the Knickerbrook chicane and crossed the line in
third while Shakey came back on track and finished fourth.
He was later awarded third place after an investigation into
the incident and both riders sportingly shook hands. Shakey
is now up to fifth in the Championship standings.
James Haydon was in contention for the win in the opening
race and finished fourth just two seconds behind the winner.
In the next race he was knocked off track by Kawasaki’s
Dean Thomas at Shell Oils corner and despite rejoining the
race, finished out of the points in 17th.
Ducati’s Gregorio Lavilla won both races.
Rizla Suzuki will test at Croft in North Yorkshire on Tuesday,
May 9th before making the trip to Mondello Park in the Republic
of Ireland for the fifth round of the Championship on Sunday,
May 21st.
Shakey Byrne:
“A massive thank you to the medical staff who kept
me hydrated and fit enough to race this weekend. I have had
a serious stomach bug which meant I couldn’t eat or
sleep and felt absolutely terrible in the races.
“Before the first race Niall Mackenzie told me to do
the warm up lap and if I felt bad then come in to the pits
and go straight to bed. But when you receive the amount of
support I do from Rizla Suzuki it wasn’t an option and
I had to give it a go. I’m glad I did…
“In both races I wasn’t riding as well as I could
have, I just wasn’t strong enough to muscle the bike
around. Thanks to the team for giving me a great bike this
weekend and also to Jonathan Rea for being such a good sport
over our last lap clash and conceding third place. I’m
sure we’ll both be fighting for more podiums again very
soon.”
James Haydon:
“In the opening race there were four of us battling
at the front. I was disappointed to end up fourth and made
a minor change to the rear suspension to improve the bike
for the next race.
“I didn’t get as good a start in the second race
and going into Shell Oils a Kawasaki collided with me and
forced me off the track on to the wet grass where I dropped
the bike. I got back on and fought my way through to 17th
from dead last by the end. That’s a shame because I
think I had the pace to compete for the podium and never got
the opportunity.”
Robert Wicks - Team Manager:
“What a heroic ride by Shakey to score two podium finishes
while being seriously ill. Most riders wouldn’t have
got on their bikes but Shakey wasn’t going to let anything
stop him. I am sure if he had been fully fit he would’ve
been difficult to beat but he can leave here content in the
knowledge he has the speed and potential to win races.
“James rode a brilliant opening race to take fourth
and was looking to match that or better in the second before
bad luck and a Kawasaki took him off track and out of contention.
Like Shakey, he can leave here knowing he has the bike and
ability to challenge for race wins.
“We have shown the real potential of the team and it
feels great to be back in the thick of the racing. Rizla Suzuki
has had a tough start to the season but today’s performances
by the riders and the entire team have been a real inspiration.
Our test at Croft should hopefully yield further improvements
and we look forward to the next race at Mondello Park.”
Race One Result: 1: Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati)
27:41.446, 2: Shane Byrne (Rizla Suzuki) +0.429, 3: Leon Haslam
(Ducati) +0.870, 4: James Haydon (Rizla Suzuki) +2.087, 5:
Karl Harris (Honda) +11.188, 6: Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) +19.467,
7: Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +20.053, 8: Jonathan Rea (Honda) +20.196,
9: Michael Rutter (Honda) +20.878, 10: Glen Richards (Honda)
+25.854.
Race Two Result: 1: Lavilla 27:33.612, 2:
Harris +0.058, 3: Shane Byrne (Rizla Suzuki) +12.004, 4: Rea
+12.380, 5: Kiyonari +12.430, 6: Rutter +14.764, 7: Haslam
+14.826, 8: Hill +22.645, 9: Richards +27.654, 10: Ben Wilson
(Suzuki) +27.858, 17: James Haydon (Rizla Suzuki) +54.143.
Championship Positions (after four of 13 rounds):
1: Lavilla 182, 2: Haslam 121, 3: Kiyonari 108, 4: Harris
88, 5: Shane Byrne (Rizla Suzuki) 81, 6: Rea 75, 7: Rutter
61, 8=: Laverty and Hill 52, 10: Smart 50. 14: James Haydon
(Rizla Suzuki) 28.
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