‘Heat of the battle’ mistake proves costly for O’Halloran

A bulletproof Jason O’Halloran through four races now sits 6 points behind Christian Iddon following BSB round two at Knockhill. 

O’Halloran’s start to the weekend looked reminiscent of the opening round at Oulton Park. 

The McAMS Yamaha rider took his first pole position of the year before securing second place in race one - keeping a 100% podium streak intact. 

However, problems quickly arose when O’Halloran had to start from the third row for race two. 

BSB’s current grid positioning system is one determined by fastest race laps - therefore getting a good result is just relevant to that specific race - holds no benefit to the following one; unlike WorldSBK where the Superpole race result is an indication of where you begin race two. 

It was the first time this season that O’Halloran was off the front row, and unlike team-mate Tarran Mackenzie who climbed up from 15th to sixth in race one, the Australian was unable to do something similar and instead lost the championship lead due to a turn seven crash. 

"I’m disappointed with the second race, I made a small mistake in the heat of the battle wanting to make a break from the group and tucked the front," said O’Halloran. 

"That meant starting on row three for the final race too which was always going to be difficult. 

"My pace was the same as the leaders’ in the final race but it’s so tough to bridge gaps here as it’s a tricky place. 

"We had the pace this weekend; I had a pole, a second place and then a sixth place in race three so I’m happy and looking forward to getting back to Brands Hatch and hopefully getting back on the box."