You have to wonder what can stop Shane Byrne from winning this year's Bennetts British Superbike Championship.
After all, not many would be able to score a comfortable win in a shortened race having been brought to a virtual standstill on the opening lap and dropped well outside the top ten...
Indeed, with seven wins from ten starts, Byrne's vital statistics are one man's joy (mainly himself and the Ducati Airwaves team) to another man's despair (pretty much everyone else in the pit-lane).
Still, with ten rounds down and 14 remaining, while this year's British Superbike Championship may not look as though it will go down to the wire it is still worth pointing out that the season has not reached the half-way stage yet and plenty of points are still up for grabs.
Next stop on the tour is
Mallory Park, a renowned bike circuit and one that promises to provide close racing as ever and, maybe, even an alternative winner.
The previous round at
Snetterton did at least see a new name grace the winner's list this year in the shape of Leon Camier, who scored his first BSB triumph with Airwaves Ducati after an enjoyable final lap tussle with that man Byrne. A second place later in the day means he is now Byrne's closest title contender – albeit not that close at 83 points adrift.
While grumbles about the 1098 Ducatis continue on, reigning champions HM Plant insist their latest evolution Honda is on the verge of making the next step to competitiveness after a solid, but ultimately frustrating weekend at Snetterton where both Cal Crutchlow and Leon Haslam occasionally held the advantage, only to let it slip for a number of factors.
Just three points now separate fifth down to seventh in the standings, but it is the latter of those riders – Tom Sykes – that looks most likely to be a race win contender this weekend. Having seemingly dispelled some of the dismal luck he was suffering earlier in the season, Sykes was on the podium again at Snetterton and only missed out on jumping up to fifth in the standings by adverse weather that kept him down the order in the second race of the weekend.
