The Swan Yamaha team got the fourth round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship underway at Thruxton today (Saturday) as Tommy Hill and Michael Laverty ended the opening two free practice sessions in second and third respectively.
Hill battled through the pain of his injured shoulder at the previous round at Croft and although still not completely healed he is feeling more confident this weekend that he can once again challenge for a podium finish for the Swan Yamaha team. Laverty has been getting to grips with the high-speed Hampshire circuit and believes that some tweaks tomorrow ahead of qualifying will put him in a stronger position ahead of qualifying tomorrow.
Hill said: "We have been trying to do consistent laps over race length to get the best from the tyres and I have been happy that we have been able to do that today. In the first session we used tyres from Croft and I knew that there would be a few riders that would use a new tyre before the end of the session which moved them up the order. I could have done the same and have been faster but that’s not what today was about. In the second session we did the same and we didn’t have to make any major changes. My shoulder is still not the best but I have to put that at the back of my mind and get on with the job as I don’t want to make excuses. I just need to grit my teeth and get the Swan Yamaha back on the podium this weekend."
Laverty said: "I am reasonably happy with our performance today although we know there is still more to come. We have some work to do to make the Swan Yamaha feel more stable because of the bumps here, but we are not miles away so a few changes will make all the difference. We just need to improve that to stop the rear wheel spinning on the bumps at around 160mph in places and once we have calmed it down a bit then our times will improve. I am feeling content and know that the Swan Yamaha team will work hard to get us in a strong position for qualifying tomorrow."
[Press Release Courtesy of Swan Yamaha]
