HARROW rider Steve Heneghan rode through a difficult weekend to bring a strong result aboard his Quattro Group, HCL, Yamaha R1, in the Metzeler 1000 National Superstock Championship.

In the free practice session, Steve placed himself in 32nd position, and was clocked through the speed traps at almost 140 mph. After suffering with chicken pox the previous week, he was still recovering and was not yet back to full fitness.

In the first of the two qualifying sessions, Steve improved his time by almost two seconds, and was placed provisionally 31st on the grid. He was quicker through the speed traps, at over 140mph.

In the second session, he didn't manage to improve his time, with the track being damp after earlier rain. He was to line up on the eighth row of the grid, in 31st position.

In the morning warm-up before the race, Steve was 24th quickest, again in damp conditions.

The race started well for Steve, making up four places on the first lap, taking him up to 27th position within the first few corners of the race.

He steadily climbed for the rest of the race, catching a group of riders, and battling with them towards the end of the race. He got the best of them, finishing ahead of the five strong pack, in 25th position.

Steve then headed to Brands Hatch for the re-run of the snowed off first round. He had qualified back in April, and was to start from the eighth row in 30th position.

He was quick in the free practice session, clocking an impressive 146mph through the speed traps, and improving his time by almost a second from the his original qualifying time.

In the race, Steve made a lightning start, moving up eight places in the first lap. He kept on passing riders lap after lap, until he was locked in a battle for eighteenth place. He rode strongly against two other riders, and managed to come out on top, taking eighteenth place as the chequered flag fell.

He said afterwards: "I am pleased with my result after starting so low down the grid. We had problems when we qualified, but to get such a strong result from it is promising.

"I have to thank all the guys at Quattro Group and Heneghan Construction Limited, without them it wouldn't have been possible."

Steve and the team are already in Northern Ireland for the prestigious Kennedy International North West 200 road races that take place over the next week. Steve hopes to have some more strong finishes there, as he did in 2007.