BSB: Shakey: "We did what we had to"

MCE BSB series leader Shane Byrne wasn’t too disappointed to leave Assen with two second places after racing with the harder option Pirelli SC1 rear tyre for the first time this season.

Colder temperatures forced the four-time British Champion to opt for the harder rubber, which is the preferred choice of title rival Leon Haslam. However, he was able to race with the JG Speedfit man in both races, missing out by just 0.01 seconds in the opening encounter before a bad start saw him catch Haslam too late for a pass in the second race.

However, walking away with two runner up spots – Byrne only lost ten points in the championship chase meaning he sits 17 points ahead of Haslam going in to the final round at Brands Hatch.

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“I was happy enough with second in the first race, especially as we proved we’re fast on the harder tyre as well as the soft,” he said. “Leon’s made no secret of the fact he prefers the SC1 but we raced with him all the way and only lost by a hundredth of a second. There were some points on the track where we were strong and some where we weren’t as strong so we looked at rectifying that for race two although it was a bit of a surprise to be in sixth and on the second row!

“It wasn’t the ideal place to be and, unfortunately, I made a really bad start which made it hard work from the word go. I got boxed in and was way back whilst it also took me what seemed like ages to get by Richard Cooper. I struggled to find a way by but once I did I got through behind Leon although he was riding really well, controlling the race from the front. I needed to finish second, at least, which I did and we’ll keep our heads down and look to get back to race winning form at Brands Hatch.”

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