Tyco Suzuki's Josh Brookes will start tomorrow's British Superbike Championship seventh round at Brands Hatch in Kent from the front row of the grid after posting fourth-quickest time in today's qualifying.

The Australian GSX-R1000 rider overcame a crash in free practice, when he was forced to take avoiding action because of a slower rider, to bravely return a front row grid position. Team mate Alastair Seeley also crashed in the early session, which put his crew under pressure to repair the machine for qualifying. He did force his way through Q1 but an electrical problem, caused by a damaged wire from the earlier incident, ended his session prematurely and the Ulsterman will start tomorrow's opening race from row five.

PJ Jacobsen was thrown into the lion's den in today's National 1000cc Superstock class: The 18-year-old New Yorker, who had never ridden the Brands GP circuit until today, used the opening session to familiarise himself with the layout, posting 18th from the second session for tomorrow's race.

Josh Brookes:

"I did come into the weekend feeling quite confident after a good performance here at the end of last season, but I haven't been quite getting the confidence I need to match those lap times. After the crash this morning I had to use the first qualifying session as practice; then we made a few suspension changes to improve the bike. I was dripping with sweat as I really tried so hard to bridge that gap, and although we are on the front row, we still have a bit of work to do for tomorrow."

Alastair Seeley:

"The crash at Druids certainly didn't help things and put the boys under a bit of pressure. It's a pity as we were making progress and I was getting into the groove out there but I still think someone is sticking pins in my Voodoo Doll! It's a matter of making the best of race one tomorrow and posting a lap time to move us up the grid."

Philip Neill - Team Manager:

"It's always going to be a hard day when you crash before qualifying, so to have both boys down within minutes of each gave the guys extra work in the garage. Unfortunately for Alastair a tiny wire, which was damaged in his crash and could never have been detected; cost him with a retirement in Q2. Josh did a good job getting up to fourth on a day when he was not entirely happy, which is testament to his determination. PJ was up against it having to learn the circuit, while also trying to qualify and give enough feedback to give him a comfortable set-up. He's enjoying the experience with our team and I'm sure he'll finish strong in tomorrow's race."

Brands Hatch BSB Qualifying Results:

1 Shane Byrne (Kawasaki) 1:25.908,
2 Tommy Hill (Yamaha) 1:25.970,
3 Michael Laverty (Honda) 1:26.205,
4 Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki GSX-R1000) 1:26.339,
5 Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha) 1:26.352,
6 Chris Walker (Kawasaki) 1:26.356,
7 James Westmoreland (Honda) 1:26.413,
8 Graeme Gowland (Honda) 1:26.426,
9 Alex Lowes (Honda) 1:26.815,
10 Michael Rutter (Kawasaki) 1:26.824.
20 Alastair Seeley (Tyco Suzuki GSX-R1000) 1:27.076.

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