Tommy Hill fulfilled his dream of becoming British Superbike Champion by an incredible 0.006 seconds and two points from ex GP star John ‘Hopper’ Hopkins at Brands Hatch today. In testament to the closeness in racing and regulations, the prestigious title went down to the last corner of the last lap of the final race of the season!
Local hero Tommy was besieged by thousands of fans as the culmination of an injury strewn career was realised. After winning the inaugural R6 Cup, Tommy became an integral part of Pirelli’s racing R+D programme with Virgin Yamaha before the BSB ‘control tyre’ introduction in 2008.
Another local star Shane Byrne dominated Sunday’s two races with a dominant double win to clinch third in the series. Tommy’s teammate Michael Laverty had kept himself in Championship contention until a race crash ended his hopes. Fast Aussie Josh Brookes broke the lap record, took two fastest laps and had a spectacular accident, almost destroying his Relentless by TAS Suzuki.
Race one took place on Saturday under an overcast sky but remained dry over the shorter 16 lap sprint race. The tension was palpable as both Hopkins and Hill made small errors to end up battling for the final podium place, while Michael Laverty and Josh Brookes powered into an eight second lead at the front. Tommy dropped to sixth on the first lap before making the most of his medium compound SC2 Pirelli Diablo Superbike front tyre to put in some lightning fast laps to pass Rutter, Ellison and then Hopper. A captivating battle then ensued as the two title protagonists traded places with Hopper taking third at the flag. Josh Brookes smashed the Superbike lap record with a 1:25.426 (previous record 1:25.724)
Shane Byrne recovered from a crash in qualifying (and subsequent 18th grid position) to scythe through the pack to finish sixth in race one. ‘Shakey’ also fell off in Sunday warm up but bounced back magnificently over the next two races.
Race two was a nailbiting affair for team managers as an incredible nine riders crashed out in ultra difficult, damp conditions including Josh Brookes, Michael Laverty and new ‘Evo’ champ Glen Richards. With a fully dry line, riders had no option but to go for full Pirelli Diablo Superbike slicks but there remained damp patches and any slight deviation off-line spelt disaster. Shane Byrne and Jon Kirkham made the most of the conditions to finish a whopping 10 seconds ahead of eventual third place man James Ellison. Ellison stalked Hill for the entire race to pounce on the penultimate lap leaving the ‘Title fighter’ in a disappointing fourth position. The big surprise of the day came when Hopkins stopped on the very first lap, after a mystery electrical problem temporarily stopped his machine. Hopkins then gave himself a mountain to climb as he caught the rest of the field and worked his way up to an impressive twelfth at the flag. Shakey logged the fastest lap with a 1:27.107 circulation on a fast drying track, putting himself in pole position for the final outing.
The second race carnage left fans with the awesome spectacle of an ‘everything to play for’ race three finale with Hopkins a mere two points ahead of his rival Hill. This last encounter remained a game of high speed chess as Hill followed Hopper for 17 laps before an audacious overtake initiated an incredible battle to the line between the two. With no quarter given and some breathtaking moves, Tommy eventually crossed the line an almost imperceptible 0.006 seconds in front.
In the British Supersport Championship the year long battle of attrition between Alastair Seeley and Ben Wilson with Seeley coming out in front and taking a deserved series crown. The pair traded wins all year with some awesome racing in this Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa shod series.
Jason Griffiths, Pirelli Racing Manager commented, “What a fitting end to a sensational season! Congratulations to Tommy who has spent many years with Pirelli and also to Shaun Muir and the Swan Yamaha team. Hopper and the Samsung Crescent Racing squad could not have come any closer to winning the title and played their part in an awesome spectacle. We’re really pleased with the fantastic lap times set by Josh Brookes in qualifying and the new lap record set in Saturday’s race which highlighted the performance of the Pirelli Diablo Superbike slicks. Thanks from Pirelli to the riders, teams and all the people involved in making the BSB ‘show’ happen throughout the season.”
