Defending MCE Insurance British Superbike Champion Shane 'Shakey' Byrne kicked off the Bank Holiday weekend at Oulton Park by topping the opening free practice session by 0.351s from Tommy Bridewell as the Tyco BMW rider pushed towards the top.

Bridewell had been holding the top position earlier in the session as the Tyco BMW rider builds on their positive test at the Cheshire circuit last Friday, closing in at the sharp end until Byrne moved ahead with a further improvement on his final lap.

Ryuichi Kiyonari's last lap improvement saw him climb to third on the timesheets for the Buildbase BMW team as he pushed the second PBM Kawasaki of Stuart Easton back to fourth place. The Scottish contender had been running in second place towards the end of the session before a technical problem at Brittens meant he had to watch the remainder of the opening free practice from the sidelines.

Brands Hatch double race winner James Ellison held fifth position for the JG Speedfit Kawasaki team, just ahead of the leading Honda Racing Fireblade of Jason O'Halloran, who moved ahead of Josh Brookes on the Milwaukee Yamaha in the final ten minutes.

Peter Hickman continued his top ten finishing performances in eighth for the RAF Reserves BWM team whilst faster laps from both Danny Buchan and Jack Kennedy saw them lock out the final two positions in the top ten at the chequered flag.

MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship, Oulton Park, free practice one result:

Shane Byrne (PBM Kawasaki) 1m:35.379s
Tommy Bridewell (Tyco BMW) +0.351s
Ryuichi Kiyonari (Buildbase BMW) +0.372s
Stuart Easton (PBM Kawasaki) +0.503s
James Ellison (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) +0.599s
Jason O'Halloran (Honda Racing) +0.892s
Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha) +0.899s
Peter Hickman (RAF Reserves BMW) +1.171s
Danny Buchan (Be Wiser Kawasaki) +1.302s
Jack Kennedy (Team WD-40 Kawasaki) +1.655s