Sport – Breakthrough in British Superbike 2017: Shane Byrne and Ducati keep their crown! – Used DUCATI

2017 British Superbike twist: Shane Byrne and Ducati keep their crown !

Sport - Breakthrough in British Superbike 2017: Shane Byrne and Ducati keep their crown! - Used DUCATI

Against all expectations, and in part thanks to a horrific brake failure on Leon Haslam’s Kawasaki in the middle of the final, Shane Byrne and his Ducati remain on the throne in the British Superbike. The soon-to-be-41-year-old pilot gets his sixth coronation! Back to video.

The magnificent final which opposed and during the was not the only event not to be missed under any circumstances Sunday, October 15, 2017 … The grand final of the British Superbike (BSB) also deserved the attention of bikers adept at fighting and chills !

Sport - Breakthrough in British Superbike 2017: Shane Byrne and Ducati keep their crown! - Used DUCATI

Once again this year, the British Superbike champion title was played in the last round of the championship, on the small – but very strong! – Brands Hatch circuit. With a 32-point lead, Leon Haslam (No.91 Kawasaki) was the favorite, but defending champion Shane Byrne put a lot of pressure on him…

Winner of the first two races of the weekend, "Shakey" totals 629 points and is only two points behind the Ninja n ° 91 (4th then 10th at 631 points) when it comes to the final round of the season 2017 … And to spice it up, the Australian Josh Brookes remains in ambush, his counter showing 609 points !

Sport - Breakthrough in British Superbike 2017: Shane Byrne and Ducati keep their crown! - Used DUCATI

Unfortunately for "Leon", his Kawasaki let him go on the 6th lap … More precisely, his brakes suddenly stopped working, forcing the 2010 WSBK runner-up to jump off his bike at full speed: 172 mph according to the readings (277 km / h) !

The green racing car and its pilot finish their race and the 2017 championship at the bottom of the air fences (see the video at 3:35). Unless Byrne and Brookes hit the ground running too, title hopes soar for the "Pocket Rocket", already second in the championship last year.

Sport - Breakthrough in British Superbike 2017: Shane Byrne and Ducati keep their crown! - Used DUCATI

On the track, Byrne has to come to his senses: he knows his main opponent is "out" – Shane was right behind Leon when the incident happened! -, but cannot completely relax his attention and his efforts because the BSB "Bad Boy" and his Yamaha are in charge of this last round !

The race was neutralized by the safety car, then set off again. Chased by his compatriot O’Halloran on Honda, by Irishman Ellison and Englishman Laverty on their own Yamaha, Brookes finally manages to win and pockets 25 points. !

Sport - Breakthrough in British Superbike 2017: Shane Byrne and Ducati keep their crown! - Used DUCATI

The n ° 25 therefore totals 634 points in the end, 3 more than the unlucky Leon Haslam … but 3 less than Shane Byrne, sixth of this third and last round at Brands Hatch. For the first time in his long career, crowned with six national titles in the Superbike category, the n ° 67 therefore retains his crown. !

Such a feat in BSB hadn’t happened for ten years and Ryuichi Kiyonari’s double on Fireblade. Before the most English of Japanese riders, only Niall MacKenzie had managed to keep his "Number One" plate by being crowned British champion in 1996, 1997 and 1998 on Yamaha. !

Sport - Breakthrough in British Superbike 2017: Shane Byrne and Ducati keep their crown! - Used DUCATI

Congratulated at the end of his lap of honor by Leon Haslam himself – despite fractures to his left ankle, right wrist and thumb! -, Mister Byrne brings to four his number of titles with Ducati: in 2003 on 998, in 2008 on 1098 (2012 and 2014 on ZX-10R), and the last two with the Panigale R.

The pilot from London will blow out his 41 candles (forty-one!) On December 10, but he does not seem determined to hang up the leather. In his declarations, n ° 67 indicates that he still has some feats to accomplish … In the company of one, for example? "Stay Tuned!"…

Sport - Breakthrough in British Superbike 2017: Shane Byrne and Ducati keep their crown! - Used DUCATI

Shane Byrne, British Superbike champion 2017:
“After the first win yesterday (Saturday), we were down to 14 points. And with the second today, we were only 2 points behind Leon. To be completely honest, when I saw Leon tumble down at the start of the third round, I was like, you know what, this is the Leon we know and love. He’s here, he’s going to fight. I was over. ‘happy, to follow him a bit and I thought I would try a few maneuvers towards the end of the race, to get back up. But when he fell, I just couldn’t believe it. It broke the mood a bit but in the end. final, we came here to win a championship and that’s what we did. I’m so sorry for Leon. We had a quick chat and hug, I’m wholehearted with him. He came in with 32 points ahead of this last event, and had the title snatched away again. But I’m so happy for all my fans, my team, my sponsors. s time I was champion, I went to another championship where I was beaten. When you look at my CV over the last 5 or 6 years, I did 2-1, 2-1 … This year I was leaving to finish second with my delay. But we turned the tide and won a second straight title. It’s a hell of a tick on my list and in my career. There are more before we start thinking about what we’re going to do next ".

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