Samsung Honda’s Alex Lowes will start from pole position for the opening race of the second round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship at Thruxton after the Datatag Extreme Qualifying session was cancelled due to track conditions following heavy rainfall.

The action had been suspended as race officials inspected the Hampshire circuit over an extensive period and MCE BSB Series Race Director Stuart Higgs explained: “Norman Williamson our MCRCB safety delegate and Adrian Johnstone our MCRCB chief steward and I have assessed the circuit. We are not in a position to restart so we have cancelled MCE BSB qualifying and the grid will be formed from the combined result from free practices.”

Lowes said:

“It is shame that it is not a real pole position after a qualifying session, but I will settle for it as I was fastest here in both the wet and then the dry sessions so I am well set for the races. This is the right decision made in everyone’s interests; this circuit is really fast and these conditions made it unsafe. I just feel bad for the spectators and marshals who have stood out in the pouring rain.”

The grid has been decided from combined free practice times. Lowes’ fastest lap from the second session puts him on pole position ahead of Tyco Suzuki’s PJ Jacobsen as the New Yorker lines up on the front row for the first time at only his second MCE BSB event. Defending champion Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne and Josh Brookes complete the front row of the grid.

Padgetts Honda’s Jakub Smrz heads row two on his debut at the Hampshire track with Michael Rutter (Bathams Honda), Josh Waters (Milwaukee Yamaha) and Chris Walker (Quattro Plant Bournemouth Kawasaki) line up on the second row.

Grid positions for Thruxton race one (based upon combined free practice times):

1: Alex Lowes (Samsung Honda) 1m:21.626s
2: PJ Jacobsen (Tyco Suzuki) +0.294s
3: Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) +0.378s
4: Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki) +0.602s
5: Jakub Smrz (Padgetts Honda) +1.065s
6: Michael Rutter (Bathams Honda) +1.067s

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