RACE ace Lance Cronshaw made a promising start to his superbike career after finishing in the top twenty at the opening round of the Virgin Mobile Cup.

In front of a bumper Bank Holiday crowd at Brands Hatch, the 18-year-old from Great Harwood rode an intelligent race, shaving over three seconds off his practice times.

One of the youngest riders in the field, Cronshaw kept out of trouble in the 22-lap race to finish 20th out of a 29-strong field.

"For someone taking part in their first race on a Yamaha R6 superbike, at a circuit he's only been on once before, Lance did everything right," said his dad, Philip.

"It's a huge step from club racing to the biggest one-make championship in Britain - in effect, it's three or four rungs up the ladder - so no-one was expecting fireworks."

The high-profile series, which pitches the best 25 young riders in the country against one another on identical R6 machines, is widely accepted as the breeding ground for potential Superbike stars.

Run as a support race to the hugely-succesful British Superbike Championship, the prize on offer to the 2005 winner is a factory ride with the Virgin Mobile team.

"There are some very good riders out there who are all hungry for success, so it was important to gain some experience of the bike, learn the circuit, and build up some speed," added Philip.

"But most importantly, Lance's lap times were improving as the weekend progressed.

"In the first open practice he was clocking around the 55 second mark, by the end of the race he was down to under 52 seconds, which demonstrates the progress he is making."

"Confidence is the key and that's getting better all the time. As the race wore on, Lance was stuck behind a group of slower riders who were beginning to hold him up.

"But he simply ran out of laps to try an overtaking manouevre, and decided to play it safe. There's a long way to go before the championship finishes in October."

Cronshaw will be back in action in two weeks time, when the Virgin Mobile Cup heads for the ultra-quick airfield circuit of Thruxton in Hampshire.

Cronshaw would like to thank his sponsors, High Frequency Systems, Keith Dixon Motorcycles, Mandy's Nails, Ian Dixon, Tony and Suzanne Shaw, Bob Wright and Jack Hargreaves Wholesale Meats.