Tarran Mackenzie claimed his fifth win of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship season at Silverstone this afternoon, bouncing back from his huge crash yesterday to snatch victory from Josh Brookes on the final lap of race two at Silverstone.
At the start of the race, Gino Rea launched to the front of the pack from pole position, but a lap later and Brookes had made up three positions to put the VisionTrack Ducati into the lead.
Mackenzie meanwhile was in the mix with the leading contenders with Bradley Ray moving into second ahead of Christian Iddon, Rea and the McAMS Yamaha contender.
Mackenzie had undergone further rigorous assessments by the BSB Medical Team this morning after sustaining a fractured fifth metacarpal on his left hand in yesterday’s crash, and was passed fit to ride.
Brookes continued to lead the pack ahead of Ray, Tommy Bridewell, Iddon, Rea and Mackenzie, but on lap 14, the pack shuffled as the Iddon was forced to save a huge moment, that dropped him down the order.
At the front, Brookes still had the edge from Ray, but Bridewell was on the move and he dived down the inside at Copse to claim second position for the Oxford Products Racing Ducati team.
The pair traded blows for several laps in the battle for second, as Ray bids to secure his position in the Showdown.
Mackenzie though had been regaining ground and by lap 26 had moved back up the pack and into second place ahead of Ray and his teammate Jason O'Halloran, who is also still battered and bruised after yesterday’s crash.
On the final lap Mackenzie lunged down the inside of Brookes at Copse to take the lead, but the defending champion also had O’Halloran for company and he made his move at Luffield to push their VisionTrack Ducati rival back into third at the chequered flag.
The podium finish in the second race means Brookes is now just three points adrift of eighth in the standings, as three places are still to be confirmed between five riders in the final race of the day at Silverstone.
Ray’s fourth place means he currently holds eighth in the standings and just a three-point buffer over Brookes ahead of race three.
Bridewell completed the top five, fending off the challenges from Rea and Iddon, whilst Ryan Vickers finished in eighth just ahead of Rory Skinner meaning that the pair are now out of contention for a Title Fighter position.
Peter Hickman completed the top ten after confirming his place in the Showdown yesterday, ahead of Lee Jackson, Danny Buchan and Glenn Irwin with the trio remaining in the Title Fighter hunt this afternoon.
Bennetts British Superbike Championship, Silverstone, Race 2 result:
1. Tarran Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha)
2. Jason O'Halloran (McAMS Yamaha) +0.083s
3. Josh Brookes (VisionTrack Ducati) +0.370s
4. Bradley Ray (Rich Energy OMG Racing BMW) +0.456s
5. Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Products Racing Ducati) +1.313s
6. Gino Rea (Buildbase Suzuki) +1.469s
7. Christian Iddon (VisionTrack Ducati) +5.908s
8. Ryan Vickers (RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki) +6.330s
9. Rory Skinner (FS-3 Racing Kawasaki) +7.020s
10. Peter Hickman (FHO Racing BMW) +7.589s
For the full result please click here
Bennetts British Superbike Championship standings after Silverstone Race 2:
1. Jason O'Halloran (McAMS Yamaha) 419
2. Tarran Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha) 318
3. Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Products Racing Ducati) 288
4. Christian Iddon (VisionTrack Ducati) 268
5. Peter Hickman (FHO Racing BMW) 230
6. Glenn Irwin (Honda Racing) 189
7. Danny Buchan (SYNETIQ BMW) 178
8. Bradley Ray (Rich Energy OMG Racing BMW) 173
9. Josh Brookes (VisionTrack Ducati) 170
10. Lee Jackson (FS-3 Racing Kawasaki) 159
For the full championship standings please click here