Rea's hopes end prematurley at Mondello.

Jonathan Rea's hopes for the highest score of the season at Mondello Park were dashed in both 18-lap races at the 2.176-mile circuit.

The 18-year-old Ulsterman had looked strong all weekend at the Irish track - even securing his first pole position at the fifth round of the 2005 Bennetts British Superbike Championship.

However, a bad start to race one saw the Ulster teenager get caught up in traffic before touching the back wheel of Michael Rutter and ending his race prematurely in the gravel on the way into the first corner. Rea returned uninjured to the grid for race two and his early progress looked much more promising.

He briefly took the holeshot from pole position before slipping back into second place. Despite moving further down the pack, Rea continued to hold his own against an array of more experienced contenders. The Red Bull Honda rider was running in sixth position on lap 14 when he was forced to retire due to an electrical problem with the Red Bull Fireblade.

"I'm obviously disappointed with my race results, but I've also got a lot of positives to take away from this weekend," he commented. "I scored my first pole position and proved that I am capable of running with the leading pack on the Red Bull machine.

"This is just reward for all the faith that Honda Racing and Red Bull have shown in me this season to give me such a good opportunity in the world's leading domestic Superbike championship. I'm looking forward to Croft now where I will hopefully qualify well and get back into the points."