Alex Lowes raced to his third pole position of the season in sweltering conditions at Snetterton despite what he admitted was his toughest meeting of the season so far. The Samsung Honda rider is also coming off the back of a disappointing weekend at Knockhill where he crashed out of race one and lost his championship lead but he looks well placed to make inroads tomorrow.
The 22 year old was three tenths quicker than new series leader Shane Byrne and is hopeful of taking the fight to ‘Shakey’ on race day.
“It may not have looked like it but this has been my most difficult round of the season so far; in free practice we had a few concerns, but we have been trying in every session. I just hope that it all pays off now in the races, and I am happy enough with that lap after the nightmare day we had on Friday. All I can do now is give my all in these races and work as hard as I can.”
Byrne was annoyed at having missed out on pole but remains a strong contender to add to his six race victories already this year. Josh Brookes is still to open his account but stands a good chance from third while the rejuvenated Ryuichi Kiyonari is also a threat from the outside of the front row as he battles for a showdown spot.
Fellow title hopeful James Ellison starts fifth for Milwaukee Yamaha ahead of Chris Walker, currently the man in possession of the last top six place. Tommy Bridewell, a showdown competitor last season, lines up seventh ahead of Jakub Smrz with Jon Kirkham and James Westmoreland rounding out the top ten on the Buildbase BMWs.
| 2013 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship – Round 5: Snetterton 300 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifying Classification | ||||
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Team | Best Time |
| 1 |  Alex Lowes |
Honda | Samsung Honda | 1:48.106 |
| 2 | Shane Byrne |
Kawasaki | Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki | 1:48.493 |
| 3 |  Josh Brookes |
Suzuki | Tyco Suzuki | 1:49.072 |
| 4 |  Ryuichi Kiyonari |
Honda | Samsung Honda | 1:49.090 |
| 5 | James Ellison |
Yamaha | Milwaukee Yamaha | 1:49.283 |
| 6 | Chris Walker |
Kawasaki | Quattro Plant Kawasaki | 1:49.318 |
| 7 | Tommy Bridewell |
Honda | Bathams Honda | 1:49.379 |
| 8 |  Jakub Smrz |
Honda | Padgetts Honda | 1:49.413 |
| 9 | Jon Kirkham |
BMW | Buildbase BMW Motorrad | 1:49.606 |
| 10 | James Westmoreland |
BMW | Buildbase BMW Motorrad | 1:49.653 |
| Eliminated in Q2 | ||||
| 11 |  PJ Jacobsen |
Suzuki | Tyco Suzuki | 1:49.922 |
| 12 | Josh Waters |
Yamaha | Milwaukee Yamaha | 1:50.003 |
| 13 |  Matteo Baiocco |
Ducati | Rapido Sport Racing | 1:50.071 |
| 14 | Dan Linfoot |
Honda | Lloyds British GBmoto Racing Honda | 1:30.366 |
| 15 | Peter Hickman |
Honda | Lloyds British GBmoto Racing Honda | 1:50.829 |
| 16 | Lee Costello |
Kawasaki | Halsall Racing Kawasaki | 1:51.396 |
| 17 | Howie Mainwaring |
Kawasaki | MH Kawasaki | 1:51.910 |
| Eliminated in Q1 | ||||
| 18 |  Robbin Harms |
Honda | Doodson Motorsport Honda | 1:50.881 |
| 19 | Michael Rutter |
Honda | Bathams Honda | 1:51.513 |
| 20 | Danny Buchan |
Kawasaki | Quattro Plant Kawasaki | 1:52.378 |
| 21 | Martin Jessopp |
BMW | Riders Motorcycles | 1:53.464 |
| 22 | Jenny Tinmouth |
Honda | Two Wheel Racing | 1:54.068 |
| 23 | Keith Farmer |
Kawasaki | Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki | 1:56.006 |
| 24 | Michael Howarth |
Kawasaki | MH Kawasaki | No Time |
