Day one of official practice on the British circuit of Silverstone was a positive one for the Althea Racing team with the two riders closing in ninth and thirteenth position.

Carlos Checa completed twenty laps in qualifying and, having got to grips with the layout, was able to push, finishing the session, as he did the free practice, inside the top ten.

“We’ve got a good idea of the track now”, declared Carlos, “but I’m still having trouble in T1. I’m going wrong in the first section and am not able to ride smoothly. We need to be faster through that section too. Having said that, I think we can fight for the positions that count. The track is great and I’m enjoying it; it’s very technical and safe, they’ve done a good job. With the sun it would be fantastic.”

Shane Byrne also likes the new-look circuit but, having recorded the sixth fastest time in free practice, he dropped back a little in qualifying.

“I like the track”, said Shane. “There are however two points that I’m finding difficult and I hope the changes I’ve made with my technicians can help us there. I’ve tried the tyres and have identified my preferred front tyre. Tomorrow we’ll continue to work on the set-up.”

The Superbike programme continues tomorrow, Saturday, with second qualifying at 10.45 and the second free practice at 13.50. Superpole gets underway at 15.00. On Sunday, after the morning’s warmup at 9.20, Race 1 begins at 12.00 and race 2 at 15.30; both are 18 laps in length, or 106.236 km.

Qualifyng 1st Session: 1. Crutchlow (Yamaha) 2’05”664 – 2. J. Rea (Honda) 2’06”006 – 3. T. Corser (BMW) 2’06”052 – 4. L. Camier (Aprilia) 2’06”064 – 5. M. Fabrizio (Ducati) 2’06”088 – 6. J. Toseland (Yamaha) 2’06”238 – 7. M. Biaggi (Aprilia) 2’06”315 – 8. L. Haslam (Suzuki) 2’06”464 – 9. C. Checa (Ducati) 2’06”475 – 10. T. Sykes (Kawasaki) 2’06”596… 13. S. Byrne (Ducati) 2’06”952.