Seeley third in British Supersport Series

Seeley battled at the rear end of the lead group throughout Sunday’s 26-lap encounter, which was punctuated early on after the safety car was deployed.

A small mistake into the last turn at mid-distance dropped him out of the running for a podium finish, leaving him to fight right to the line for fifth with another local rider, Glenn Irwin.

“We struggled with the same problem in both races this weekend with the bike backing into the hairpin and not being able to drive out of it,” said the Carrick man.

“While others enjoy that style of riding, I prefer a more in-line set-up on corner entry, which left me struggling both on corner entry and corner exit.

“The Triumphs are so good at powering away from the hairpin it was leaving us for dead.

“I was also struggling to get the bike off the line this weekend - but that’s racing. I could also have done without slipping off in the morning warm-up. The engine casing touched the kerb and I lost the front.

“There’s no doubting the speed of the Mar-Train Racing R6 and the strength of the package, so we just need to make the most of it at Brands in a few weeks’ time and get back into the championship mix.”

For Irwin on the Gearlink Kawasaki it was a case of what might have been.

He finished 10th in Saturday’s sprint race and sixth on Sunday and now lies fifth in the championship.