Josh Brookes says his victory in the second MCE British Superbike Championship race of the day at
Thruxton was a particularly 'satisfying' one after a charging ride from 14th on the grid culminated in him grabbing the lead of the final lap.
The Australian hinted at his potential in race one with a late burst of speed that saw him move from 12th on lap nine to third by the chequered flag, Brookes benefiting from his harder tyre compound to come on strong in the closing stages.
However, the flip side to his consistent tyre choice was an inability to put in a quick single lap compared to his soft rubber-shod rivals, subsequently leaving him a lowly 14th on the grid for race two.
Nonetheless, despite getting another poor start, the Tyco Suzuki man quickly shuffled his way to the front of the chasing pack in fifth position, even if the four-second margin to the leaders made his quest for victory a seemingly insurmountable one.
Despite this, Brookes got his head down and his error-free ride would see him on the back of the front group with five laps remaining, which was sufficient time for him to scythe his way through into the lead on the very final lap at the expense of Tommy Hill.
His ninth career
BSB win, and a return to glory at the scene of his first-ever series triumph in 2010, Brookes was thrilled to get his season going with such a commanding performance.
“That was a satisfying win. I knew from race one I could do it, but I also knew after race one I needed a good start. I messed the start up and thought immediately, 'this is going to be tough' especially after one lap, as I could see the leaders were so far away.
“The team did a great job for me today and I had so much confidence in the new GSX-R that I could pass almost anywhere. Once I had a clear track I set out to make smooth fast laps with not a single mistake, because that was my only chance to catch the leaders. Once I caught them… I knew I'd win.”