British domination at Silverstone as Crutchlow earns double

With seven British riders on the grid, the large crowd was hopeful of some home success and Crutchlow delivered with a fantastic double win aboard his Sterilgarda Yamaha.

He was joined on the podium by fellow Britons Jonathan Rea and Leon Haslam in the opening race and the home dominance continued in race two.

Coventry-born Crutchlow again beat Rea to victory with another Englishman Leon Camier third in an all-British top five – although Italian Max Biaggi remains in control of the overall standings.

Haslam was fourth in race two and is now 60 points behind the Aprilia of Biaggi, with HannSpree Honda rider Rea in third overall.

Crutchlow said: "It's not been easy this year but we've been trying really hard and it's great to finally get on the top step.

"I'm ecstatic to get my first wins at home. All seven of us have been looking forward to racing in England all season and I felt nervous before the race.

"It is a dream come true and to get three Brits on the podium in both races is an unbelievable effort. The crowd gave us all tremendous support throughout the day and what a brilliant day for everyone.

"The weather was a lot colder here and that suited our bike and our tyres so hopefully it will stay cold for the rest of the season."

Rea stormed to the front from the line in race one with Biaggi also slipping through to move into the top three at the first corner.

Biaggi ran wide on lap two to allow Michel Fabrizio to take third spot and the Italian set off in pursuit of Crutchlow and Rea, while Haslam was also soon past Biaggi as the veteran made a second mistake.

Crutchlow's stalking of Rea paid off at the start of lap six when he took the lead with a brave move at Copse but the Northern Irishman was back in front by the end of the lap with an equally fine move.

Haslam passed Fabrizio to set up an all-British podium before Crutchlow regained the lead on lap 11, while reigning British Superbike champion Camier passed Biaggi to move into fifth place after starting from 16th on the grid. Crutchlow finally opened up a two-second lead at the front and eased to victory ahead of Rea and Haslam, with Fabrizio and Biaggi rounding out the top five.

The start of race two saw Rea lead Crutchlow through turn one before Troy Corser dropped his BMW from third place going into Copse.

Rea was looking strong in front as the two Britons pulled clear of Haslam, who was battling with Biaggi for third spot.

Camier again charged through and moved into third at the halfway mark before another mistake from Biaggi allowed James Toseland to pass him.

Crutchlow finally took the lead with two-and-a-half laps to go with a bold pass into Maggots, while Haslam was given fourth ahead of Toseland.