"Kiyo"

The Bennetts Suzuki team is set for the MCE British Superbike Championship round at Thruxton this weekend, as the 2016 season approaches the halfway point.

The high-speed Hampshire circuit will provide the team with a unique challenge when it comes to perfecting the setup of its GSX-R1000 machines, with its combination of fast corners and abrasive asphalt. With the halfway point of the season in sight, the focus is firmly on finding a return to form after a challenging outing at Snetterton, and chasing a place in the all-important Showdown.

Tommy Bridewell, 

“I’m eager to get back on my bike this weekend. We had a bit of a tricky time at Snetterton. We suffered from a bit of chatter which limited our progress and hampered our performance, but I now want to get back on track and work with the team to solve the problem and push on, and get ourselves back to where we can be. The potential’s there, we’ve shown that. We just need to tick all the boxes this weekend.”

Ryuichi Kiyonari is hoping for a weekend free of the bad luck that’s plagued him so far this season. Snetterton was unkind to the former champion, as a faulty rear tyre effectively ended his first race before it had begun, before he ran on in race two and had to come through from the back of the field.

Ryuichi Kiyonari, 

“The season has been a little bit up and down so far with some bad luck. We had the tyre issue at Snetterton and I made a mistake, but I think we have also shown we can be fast. I want to put Snetterton behind me in the best way, by having good races at Thruxton. It is fast and exciting to ride and I’m looking forward to it. We will work hard in the practice sessions and hopefully we can be strong in the races.”

Reflecting on the first half of the season, team owner, Martin Halsall said, 

“Everyone in the Bennetts Suzuki team is extremely keen to get Tommy and Kiyo back on track this weekend. We’re halfway through the campaign and it’s been a little up and down so far. Obviously Tommy’s had some strong rides and has been on the podium, but we had some problems with chatter at Snetterton and Tommy made life difficult for himself at Knockhill with a poor qualifying. But we’ve seen what he can do, we know what the bike can do, it’s just a case of getting it to all come together.

“Kiyo has been really unlucky so far this season. We had tyre issues outside of our control at Oulton, and obviously he’s had his injury, which ruled him out of Brands Hatch and hindered his riding at Knockhill. Sadly that bad luck continued at Snetterton, where a tear in his rear tyre meant he had to run a different compound in the first race and a mistake cost him in the second race. But again, we’ve seen his potential this season. He was fastest at Brands before the crash, and his lap times in the second race at Snetterton would have put him well inside the top 10, and they were set coming through traffic. All of the ingredients are there, and at Thruxton we’ll be looking to get them all together and have a strong weekend, and keep pushing for a spot in the Showdown.”


The first free practice session for the sixth round of the British Superbike Championship takes place on Friday 22 July at 10:15, with the first race getting underway on Sunday at 13:30.