Jake Dixon says he had to battle hard in this afternoon’s second British Superbike scrap to fend off his old mentor Shane Byrne and secure third place amidst struggles with his front tyre.

With the bellowing Be Wiser Ducati of the reigning champ clawing its way back from a dismal start, Dixon could see Byrne, in fourth, closing the gap in the final laps via his pit-board.

And the RAF Regular & Reserves rider admits he nearly crashed trying to manage the front end of his Kawasaki to take his second podium of the weekend.

“I knew from lap one, we were struggling with the front on the medium tyre. For some reason or another the tyre just didn’t provide the grip that I needed like it did in race one,” he said.

“I could see the gap coming down on my board and I was trying everything. I instantly knew it was Shakey because I could hear the Ducati bellow.

“I just knew I had to hit my markers and be inch perfect, even with the problems we’ve had today. I can’t tell you how many times I nearly crashed on that one lap, it was just ridiculous.

“From where we were Friday morning to where we are now is a massive credit to the team. Obviously two wins would be better but two podiums is fantastic from where we were, and it just makes the six week break much better.”