Cal Crutchlow maintained his slender advantage in final free practice for the latest round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship ahead of what promises to be an exceptionally close qualifying session.
A chance for the riders to fettle their dry weather set-up after a first day ruined by damp conditions, Crutchlow and Byrne swapped the top spot throughout the 50 minutes, but it was the Honda rider who would emerge on top by a mere three hundredths of a second.
Nonetheless, with just seven tenths covering the top ten, it is anticipated that qualifying will be a competitive affair.
Still, with Tom Sykes in third place, the top three would mirror that from the opening practice session of the weekend, suggesting that pole position will be between the top three teams this weekend.
Leon Camier and Leon Haslam rounded out the top five, ahead of Michael Rutter and Billy McConnell, the Australian rider continuing to show well around the tricky Leicestershire circuit. Michael Laverty, Karl Harris and Tristan Palmer completed the top ten.
The session was briefly stopped at the mid-way mark after a heavy crash for Leon Morris on the Stebbe Straight.
