Oulton Park, BSB Round 3 – mixed results for Evotech Performance
Following the second outing at Brands Hatch in April, the third round of the 2018 Bennetts British Superbike Championship, held at Oulton Park Circuit, turned out to be a bit of a mixed bag for the Evotech Performance-supported teams.
While Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne (Be Wiser Ducati) managed to secure a podium and a fourth place finish at the Cheshire circuit, it was all-change at the top of the standings following Leon Haslam’s (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) double win. As a result, Byrne now drops back to third overall with 98 points ahead of the fourth round at Snetterton in June.
Race one at a sun drenched Oulton Park saw Josh Brookes (McAMS Yamaha) finish sixth, while team-mate Tarran Mackenzie crossed the line in ninth position. Sylvain Barrier (Smiths Racing) was the only other EP-supported team rider to finish inside the top 20 – team-mate Peter Hickman failed to complete race distance. Michael Laverty (Tyco BMW) and Glenn Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati) also had their share of misfortune and didn’t cross the finish line.
In race two, the results picked up with Irwin finishing fifth behind Byrne in fourth. For McAMS, Brookes took sixth but 22-year-old Mackenzie on the second Yamaha R1 didn’t figure in the results. Hickman took 11th, while Barrier just got inside the top 20 with 19th place. Laverty made it to the flag in race two but only in 13th.
With more than a month to go until the fourth round of the series plays out at Snetterton, it’s a welcome respite for all the British Superbike Championship teams. That said, there’s no rest for us here in Lincolnshire as we continue to support teams and riders in the fast approaching North West 200 and Isle of Man TT road races. Watch this space…