Defending champion Shane 'Shakey' Byrne has equalled the all-time record of 43 race wins in the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship after a committed last lap move on Josh Brookes to take the lead on the final corner of the last lap.

Byrne had taken the lead on the opening lap as the pack reached Allard for the first time, but Alex Lowes was tucked in behind and snatched the lead before the pack reached Village. Josh Waters had a premature end to his race when he crashed out at the same section unhurt after a high-speed crash on the Milwaukee Yamaha.

Lowes held the lead over the line at the start of lap two but Byrne charged back ahead to reclaim the lead from his Samsung Honda rival and team-mate Keith Farmer. The second Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki was then embroiled in a battle with Quattro Plant Bournemouth Kawasaki's Chris Walker, but on the sixth lap the reigning Pirelli National Superstock 1000 champion crashed out on the approach to Allard unhurt after running wide, with the Nissan GT-R Safety Car deployed.


Byrne was ready to charge again when the race resumed from Lowes, Brookes and Walker, however there was disappointment for the 'Stalker' when he had problem which forced him to retire. The chasing pack were scrapping for fourth then throughout the closing stages as the Buildbase BMW pairing of Jon Kirkham and James Westmoreland swapped positions, before Milwaukee Yamaha's James Ellison closed in and split the pair at the finish after a storming recovery from his fifth row start.

PR Kawasaki claimed a top ten finish with Karl Harris in seventh after maintaining his position ahead of the lone Bathams Honda of Michael Rutter after the retirement of his team-mate. PJ Jacobsen after a mistake on the opening lap when he ran wide at Campbell was ninth and Jakub Smrz completed the top ten for Padgetts Honda.

MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship, Thruxton, race one result:

Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki)
Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki) +0.301s
Alex Lowes (Samsung Honda) +0.663s
James Westmoreland (Buildbase BMW) +6.415s
Jon Kirkham (Buildbase BMW) +6.533s
James Ellison (Milwaukee Yamaha) +6.778s
Karl Harris (PR Kawasaki) +8.464s
Michael Rutter (Bathams Honda) +8.892s
PJ Jacobsen (Tyco Suzuki) +9.553s
Jakub Smrz (Padgetts Honda) +9.817s

MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship standings after Thruxton race one:

Shane Byrne (Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki) 66
Alex Lowes (Samsung Honda) 56
Josh Brookes (Tyco Suzuki) 47
James Ellison (Milwaukee Yamaha) 35
Jon Kirkham (Buildbase BMW) 34
Ryuichi Kiyonari (Samsung Honda) 21

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