Tarran Mackenzie claimed his first pole position of the 2021 Bennetts British Superbike Championship this afternoon at Brands Hatch, with a stylish performance that put the McAMS Yamaha at the top of the times in SUPERPICKS Qualifying by 0.282s.
The final stage of Qualifying was led initially by rookie sensation Rory Skinner who set the early benchmark in the opening stages of the session on the drying track ahead of Tommy Bridewell.
It was a disastrous qualifying session for Jason O'Halloran on the second of the McAMS Yamahas as he slid out at Paddock Hill Bend, and despite making it back to pitlane, he will start 18th on the grid for today’s opening BikeSocial race.
As the session progressed, Skinner was still holding the edge and with three minutes to go, Mackenzie had cut his advantage to just 0.001s, before the McAMS Yamaha rider was able to move ahead with a minute remaining.
Bridewell was on a flier too and he moved up ahead of Skinner in the final minute to put the Oxford Products Racing Ducati on the front row, bumping Bradley Ray into fourth position to head the second row this afternoon.
Danny Buchan will start BikeSocial Race 1 alongside Ray, which is completed by Peter Hickman, with an all BMW powered second row.
Christian Iddon leads row three in seventh position, with teammate and defending champion Josh Brookes in 12th place, with Danny Kent, Glenn Irwin and Lee Jackson completing the top ten, featuring all six manufacturers.
Bennetts British Superbike Championship, Brands Hatch, SUPERPICKS Qualifying result:
1. Tarran Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha) 1m:26.192s
2. Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Products Racing Ducati) +0.282s
3. Rory Skinner (FS-3 Kawasaki) +0.298s
4. Bradley Ray (Rich Energy OMG Racing BMW) +0.364s
5. Danny Buchan (SYNETIQ BMW) +0.728s
6. Peter Hickman (FHO Racing BMW) +0.768s
7. Christian Iddon (VisionTrack Ducati) +0.799s
8. Danny Kent (Buildbase Suzuki) +0.829s
9. Glenn Irwin (Honda Racing) +0.970s
10. Lee Jackson (FS-3 Kawasaki) +1.010s