Hill: It was mega!

21-year-old wild-card Tommy Hill made an instant impact on the Corona Extra Superbike World Championship when he took a debut pole position, in the wet, at Silverstone on Saturday.

With race day dawning dry, the Virgin Mobile Yamaha rider was unable to repeat such heroics against the start studded opposition, but rode sensibly to take a pair of 12th place finishes.

"It was really good, I just enjoyed myself and made the most of the opportunity - so to get pole was just wicked for me and the whole team," Tommy told Crash.net Radio on Sunday evening. "It was mega because you're riding round and someone comes underneath you and you think 'arh! I'm not going to let them past' - and it's Alex Barros! Then you come into the next corner and you're battling with someone again and it's Noriyuki Haga or Norick Abe. There are some top boys here and the championship is definitely quick - I take my hat off to them - hopefully I'll be here next year or the year after."

"I was up to fourth at one point and held it for about three laps. The beginning of the race the pace is real hot - the boys are really on it from the word go - but once I got settled down I set similar times to the frontrunners, I just need to get going a bit quicker when the lights go green," he revealed. "It was good confidence boost to know we were all on the same tyres. Maybe the bikes are slightly different, with some of the bikes having traction and launch control, but I've done my best this weekend and given it my all."

Hill isn't sure when he'll return to World Superbike action - but is hoping to attend Brands Hatch and/or Assen later this year.

"We're not really sure if we'll do Brands Hatch World Superbikes - it depends on how the rest of the BSB season goes - but if we could do Brands I'd be well happy as it's my local race. If we could do Assen that would be a much more flowing track than Brands or Silverstone, so that'd be good as well."