Languishing well down the grid after problems in the initial qualifying session back in April, Ellison rocketed through to run with the leading bunch in the 20-lap opening race in front of another bumper Brands Hatch crowd.

After a good performance, Ellison ended up sixth which he followed up in the second leg, which was stopped early due to oil being deposited on the track, with an eighth place finish to end up in fifth place in the Championship standings.

Meanwhile Martin overcame a crash in practice on his Honda Fireblade to finish thirteenth in the opening race which he followed up with a battling twelfth place finish in race two to move him to fourteenth place in the Championship but more importantly, to set him up for next week's big North West 200 road race which takes place in Northern Ireland.

James Ellison: "I'm a bit disappointed really, we made a few changes with the bike and the pace was a bit better but the problem we had didn't really disappear so we haven't really gained too much from it. The pace car came out for a long time in the second race and the tyres went cold and I couldn't get any heat back in them and then I got snagged up in a couple of places also. We'll get some testing done and I like Donington Park so hopefully we can get sorted and get back on the podium again where we should be."

Guy Martin: "This weekend was really a case of getting the job done and damage limitation and we just wanted to collect a few points and keep myself and the bike in one piece ready for the North West next week and that's exactly what we've done. I'm happy with the bike now and I just need to take it from here really. It's onwards and upwards and God loves a trier."

Shaun Muir (Team Owner): "I'm happy with the results overall. Guy is happy with his settings now and he knows where he needs to be. I would have been happier if the pace car hadn't come out in the second race as James was just starting to catch up and I feel he could have got a fifth place, but he's fifth overall in the Championship and we've got a bit of breathing space now to do a bit of testing and overall we're happy."

The Championship action moves on to Donington Park in two weeks time where both riders will be looking to increase their points tally and Ellison in particular will be looking to maintain his standing of second placed Honda in the Championship behind Shane Byrne (Ducati), Cal Crutchlow (Honda), Leon Camier (Ducati) and Michael Rutter (Ducati).

Martin, meanwhile, starts as one of the favourites for next week's Kennedy International North West 200 which gets underway with Tuesday evening practice followed by a second practice and qualifying on Thursday with the races taking place on Saturday.

Superbike Race One Result

1, Shane Byrne (Ducati) 29m24.345s, 2, Tom Sykes (Suzuki) +1.855s, 3, Cal Crutchlow (Honda) +3.111s, 4, Leon Haslam (Honda) +3.887s, 5, Leon Camier (Ducati) +4.996s, 6, James Ellison (Hydrex Bike Animal Honda) +15.815s, 7, Stuart Easton (Kawasaki) +16.645s, 8, Billy McConnell (Kawasaki) +26.446s, 9, Simon Andrews (Yamaha) +30.384s, 10, Tristan Palmer (Honda) +33.728s. 13, Guy Martin (Hydrex Bike Animal Honda) +42.465s.

Superbike Race Two Result

1, Cal Crutchlow (Honda) 30m31.299s, 2, Shane Byrne (Ducati) +0.110s, 3, Leon Camier (Ducati) +0.748s, 4, Michael Laverty (Suzuki) +2.221s, 5, Michael Rutter (Ducati) +2.906s, 6, Leon Haslam (Honda) +3.097s, 7, Stuart Easton (Kawasaki) +3.121s, 8, James Ellison (Hydrex Bike Animal Honda) +4.147s, 9, Billy McConnell (Kawasaki) +1lap, 10, Scott Smart (Kawasaki) +1lap. 12, Guy Martin (Hydrex Bike Animal Honda) +1lap.


2008 Bennetts British Superbike Championship Standings after Round 1 (after three rounds)

1, Shane Byrne (Ducati) 140pts

2, Cal Crutchlow (Honda) 96pts

3, Leon Camier (Ducati) 83pts

4, Michael Rutter (Ducati) 66pts

5, James Ellison (Hydrex Bike Animal Honda) 64pts

6, Leon Haslam (Honda) 56pts

7, Stuart Easton (Kawasaki) 52pts

=, Michael Laverty (Suzuki) 52pts

9, Tom Sykes (Suzuki) 49pts

10, Tristan Palmer (Honda) 29pts

14, Guy Martin (Hydrex Bike Animal Honda) 19pts





Round 2 - 18th/20th April - Thruxton, Hants

Round 3 - 3rd/5th May - Oulton Park, Cheshire

Round 1 - 10th/11th May - Brands Hatch GP, Kent

Round 4 - 24th/26th May - Donington Park, Leics

Round 5 - 13th/15th June - Snetterton, Norfolk

Round 6 - 27th/29th June - Mallory Park

Round 7 - 18th/20th July - Oulton Park, Cheshire

Round 8 - 8th/10th August - Knockhill, Fife

Round 9 - 23rd/25th August - Cadwell Park, Lincs

Round 10 - 12th/14th September - Croft, North Yorkshire

Round 11 - 26th/28th September, Silverstone, Northants

Round 12 - 10th/12th October - Brands Hatch Indy, Kent