Tommy Hill - Photo Credit: Impact Images
Tommy Hill set the pace on a drying track to secure pole position for Sunday's opening race at Thruxton. The defending champion was one of those caught out by the rain at Brands Hatch last weekend but didn't put a wheel wrong this time, going half a second quicker than anybody else.
Hill's biggest problem wasn't provided by the conditions but by his own forgetfulness after he forget to put his earplugs in!
“Taking pole position was a fantastic start to the weekend and to begin with I was worried about taking a gamble as the conditions kept changing. I think there was more pressure on me here after the crash I had at Brands Hatch as I definitely didn't want to get caught out by the wet patches and have another bad grid position. It was a big shock the pace we could run in those conditions but my biggest problem was I completely forgot my ear plugs and now I will be hearing the Swan Yamaha all night! I just pushed on though and now it's about us fighting back and getting those points tomorrow.”
This week's high profile casualties in the knockout sessions were Shane 'Shakey' Byrne, Noriyuki Haga and Alastair Seeley who all dropped out in the second session. Championship leader Jon Kirkham made it through unscathed but only made it up to ninth in the final session.
In Q3, Hill was unbeatable while Ian Lowry backed up his strong practice form by taking second for Padgetts Honda. Michael Rutter put the MSS Bathams Kawasaki on the front row for the second weekend running with James Westmoreland virtually matching his time for fourth.
The second row is led by Chris Walker, making it five different teams in the top five grid positions, with Luca Scassa completing a stunning Saturday for Padgetts Racing with sixth. Josh Brookes will carry Tyco Suzuki's victory hopes from seventh, just ahead of Alex Lowes and Kirkham.
2012 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship
Round 2: Thruxton (Qualifying Result)
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Team | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Tommy Hill |
Yamaha | Swan Yamaha | 1:15.260 |
| 2 | Ian Lowry |
Honda | Padgetts Racing | +0.475 |
| 3 | Michael Rutter |
Kawasaki | MSS Bathams Kawasaki | +0.604 |
| 4 | James Westmoreland |
Honda | Team WFR | +0.645 |
| 5 | Chris Walker |
Kawasaki | Pr1mo Bournemouth Kawasaki | +0.676 |
| 6 |  Luca Scassa |
Honda | Padgetts Racing | +0.685 |
| 7 |  Josh Brookes |
Suzuki | Tyco Suzuki | +0.773 |
| 8 | Alex Lowes |
Honda | Team WFR | +0.852 |
| 9 | Jon Kirkham |
Honda | Samsung Honda | +0.942 |
| 10 |  Patric Muff |
BMW | Supersonic Racing Team | +1.808 |
| Eliminated In Q2 | ||||
| 11 | Graeme Gowland |
Honda | Team WFR | 1:17.492 |
| 12 | Peter Hickman |
Kawasaki | MSS Bathams Kawasaki | 1:17.527 |
| 13 | Michael Laverty |
Honda | Samsung Honda | 1:17.579 |
| 14 | Gary Mason |
Kawasaki | Quattro Plant Kawasaki | 1:17.583 |
| 15 | Shane Byrne |
Kawasaki | Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki | 1:17.603 |
| 16 |  Noriyuki Haga |
Yamaha | Swan Yamaha | 1:17.753 |
| 17 | Alastair Seeley |
Suzuki | Tyco Suzuki | 1:18.269 |
| 18 | Tristan Palmer |
Honda | GBmoto Racing | 1:18.456 |
| 19 | Scott Smart |
Ducati | Moto Rapido Racing | 1:19.321 |
| 20 | Tommy Bridewell |
BMW | Supersonic Racing Team | 1:19.686 |
| Eliminated In Q1 | ||||
| 21 | Stuart Easton |
Kawasaki | Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki | 1:22.431 |
| 22 | Alex Polita |
Ducati | Jentin Doodson Motorsport | 1:22.531 |
| 23 | Dan Linfoot |
BMW | Buildbase BMW Motorrad | 1:22.597 |
| 24 | Luke Quigley |
Honda | GBmoto Racing | 1:23.111 |
| 25 | John Laverty |
Aprilia | Splitlath Redmond Racing | 1:23.148 |
| 26 |  Florian Marino |
Aprilia | Splitlath Redmond Racing | 1:23.174 |
| 27 | Freddie Foray |
Kawasaki | Quattro Plant Kawasaki | 1:23.209 |
| 28 | James Hillier |
Kawasaki | Pr1mo Bournemouth Kawasaki | 1:23.320 |
| 29 | Barry Burrell |
BMW | Buildbase BMW Motorrad | 1:23.324 |
| 30 | Tom Tunstall |
Ducati | Jentin Doodson Motorsport | 1:24.692 |
| 31 | Jenny Tinmouth |
Honda | Hardinge Sorrymate.com Honda | 1:24.712 |
| 32 |  Abdulaziz Binladin |
Ducati | Moto Rapido Racing | 1:25.431 |
| 33 | Aaron Zanotti |
Suzuki | A-Plant Suzuki | 1:25.682 |
