May 1, 2023

BeerMonster Ducati Double Up At Oulton Park

The BeerMonster Ducati team enjoyed a superb day’s racing at Oulton Park today with both Glenn Irwin and Tommy Bridewell taking a Bennetts British Superbike Championship race win each to occupy the first two places in the standings.

After Irwin’s podium finish yesterday in the BikeSocial Sprint race, today’s opening race saw Bridewell head home Irwin for the PBM team’s first one-two in three seasons, before Irwin claimed victory in the day’s second outing meaning with three podiums out of a possible four this weekend, they’re now first and second in the championship with Irwin holding a four-point lead over Bridewell.
 
Yesterday’s results meant Bridewell started from pole position for bank holiday Monday’s opening 18-lap race around the Cheshire circuit with Irwin heading up the second row. Bridewell hit the front early on and for the first half of the race, there was little to choose between the front five riders, but Tommy continued to control proceedings from the front on the F23-specification V4R BeerMonster Ducati. 

As the race entered its second half, he was able to up his pace to gradually edge away and take his maiden win for Paul Bird’s Penrith-based team. His eventual winning margin was 1.5 seconds over teammate Irwin who took second, having steadily worked his way through the field. 
 
Starting the final race of the weekend with Irwin on pole position and Bridewell in third, the first lap saw them running in second and fifth and it was again Glenn at the forefront. He took the lead on the third lap and despite a fierce challenge from a bunch of riders, he managed to hold on for his second win of the season which saw him take the championship lead.
 
Bridewell, meanwhile, ran in fifth in the early stages and moved up into third at half race distance, aided by the fastest lap of the race. He was unable to climb any higher and ultimately had to settle for fourth meaning he now sits in second place in the table, just four points behind his teammate.
 
Glenn Irwin: “It’s been a brilliant day for both myself and the whole PBM BeerMonster Ducati team and you can see the passion within the garage with everyone working really hard. I really struggled at the beginning of the first race and lost a position when Peter Hickman crashed in front of me, so I had to work hard to get going. I was really happy to come through to second and give PBM a 1-2 and fair play to Tommy, he rode faultlessly. We made some changes for the final race which helped in some areas, but I nearly lost the front at Shell whilst I also made a mistake when Leon came by. I got back in front to take victory so let’s keep this run going.”
 
Tommy Bridewell: “It’s been a slightly mixed day as whilst I’m delighted with the race win, I’m disappointed with fourth in the second race. We made a slight change to the chassis, but it wasn’t enough to have made the difference it did, and the bike felt very different in the two races. In the first race, it felt a lot more stable whilst in the second, there was a lot more stress and I was having to ride on the limit to be where I was. It’s helped me understand the bike more though and I believe we can make big improvements to it so it’s a shame we haven’t got another race to try it. Overall, it’s been a positive weekend and it’s been my best ever start to a championship so with further changes, I think we can be stronger still.”
 
Johnny Mowatt, Team Co-ordinator: “With two wins today and our first 1-2 since 2020, it’s been a fantastic day for the team and it’s even sweeter with it being our local circuit and with the success coming in front of many of our sponsors. It would have been nice if we could have had Tommy on the podium in the final race as well but that would have perhaps been a bit greedy! The wins were good for different reasons, Tommy leading from start to finish in the first and then Glenn leading the final race, dropping back to third and then coming through again to win. We’ve been to two different circuits now and the bike’s proven itself at both which is testament to Ducati so let’s hope the run continues.” 
Bennetts British Superbike Championship race two (18 laps)
1 Tommy Bridewell (BeerMonster Ducati)
2 Glenn Irwin (BeerMonster Ducati)
3 Leon Haslam (BMW)
4 Andrew Irwin (Honda)
5 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha)
6 Josh Brookes (BMW)
 
Bennetts British Superbike Championship race three (18 laps)
1 Glenn Irwin (BeerMonster Ducati)
2 Leon Haslam (BMW)
3 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha)
4 Tommy Bridewell (BeerMonster Ducati)
5 Josh Brookes (BMW)
6 Peter Hickman (BMW)
 
Championship positions (after six races)
1 Glenn Irwin 91
2 Bridewell 87
= Brookes 87
4 Haslam 76
5 Ryde 73
6 Andrew Irwin 44
 
Images courtesy of Double Red: Glenn Irwin (2) and Tommy Bridewell (46) in action at Silverstone.

IRWIN AND HAGER PBM DUCATI WRAP-UP SUCCESSFUL TESTING PROGRAMME

April 24, 2025
THE Hager PBM Ducati team and rider Glenn Irwin have completed another successful R&G Official test at Oulton Park, with the opening round of the 2025 Bennetts British Superbike Championship now just over a week away. Irwin and the team have spent the last two days at the Cheshire track, grabbing as much track time as possible in the final days on track before the season begins. After ending last weekend’s Donington Park test on top, the team was keen to continue to push in the final two days, working through a busy schedule and trying a host of new components and ideas. Irwin ended the test second quickest overall after clocking the best lap of Thursday afternoon’s final session, banking a 1min 33.313s lap on his last run. He leaves feeling confident about next weekend’s opening round and can’t wait to get back out. Glenn Irwin: “That’s us finished pre-season testing and I’m feeling good. We’ve been working, working, working and the bike felt better today but we still have a bit of work to do. “It’s been really, really enjoyable, we’ve tried a number of different things and I think now we’re finding a bit of a balance. Today we unlocked something in that middle session, I did a good few 33s in that run so I think we’re strong. “It’s definitely been very productive. We haven’t gone for lap times, we’ve been focussed on getting the bike right and when that happens, the lap times come. That’s what we’re starting to see and I think we’re in a good place to come back next week and start the season.” Frank Bird Jnr, Team Co-owner: “It’s a mega way to finish, this puts us in really good stead for the season and we’ve got a lot of boxes ticked off with the bike. All the boys are working well, we’ve got everyone back into the swing of things and Glenn seems to be riding well, so we’re in a good window for the first round. “It’s been a long winter but all the hard work seems to be paying off and we’re right in the mix. It means we can come here for Round One and we’re in a great place to start from.” The opening round of the 2025 Bennetts British Superbike Championship roars into action at Oulton Park over the May Bank Holiday weekend, May 3-5.

IRWIN AND HAGER PBM DUCATI END SUCCESSFUL SECOND TEST ON TOP

April 19, 2025
THE Hager PBM Ducati team continued its strong testing form at Donington Park as rider Glenn Irwin once again ended the two days fastest overall. Although the team is still not concentrating on lap times, Irwin picked up where he left off at Circuito de Navarra earlier this month as he led the way on Friday before going even quicker on Day Two with an impressive fastest lap of 1min 27.015s in the final session. After a strong first test where he topped the timesheets at Navarra, the team headed to the second R&G Official test at Donington Park looking to work on a number of different things. Irwin was consistently quick across the opening day, ending Friday fastest overall with a 1:27.022sec lap in the final session to end the day at the top of the timesheets with what was the fastest ever BSB lap of the iconic track. Along with most of the pack, he opted to sit out of Saturday morning’s first session due to track conditions, heading out for the second to work through a few more things. He again shot to the top of the timesheets with a lap of 1:27.468, before later going one better in the final session to clock his new fastest ever lap. Glenn Irwin: “It’s been really good, like Navarra, we’ve continued with a plan. Yesterday we had a really, really strong bike here and conditions were a little better. Today conditions were tougher with the wind but everyone still finds a way to go fast. “We probably persevered with a bike which is suited to the final sector, perhaps Turn One as well. As the day went on I realised we were losing a bit in some places but we stuck with it. “It’s pleasing because I would say that isn’t the bike of choice for here, perhaps maybe yesterday's bike was better, but to top today feeling like that, to do a lot of laps in the 27s with improved pace on old tyres is good. The test has definitely been a success.” John Mowatt, Team Co-ordinator: “I think it’s been a positive test where we’ve confirmed a number of test items over the two days. We had slightly better conditions yesterday than today but I think we’ve ticked a lot of boxes, gone fairly quick so it’s all positive – roll on Oulton Park. “The plan there is more of the same, just keep trying to understand the new tyre, try and work with it. I think longevity is going to be the key now for Oulton Park, we’ll do a couple of race runs, see how the tyre lasts and then get ready for Round One.” The team will now prepare for the final test at Oulton Park next Wednesday and Thursday, April 23 and 24 which will be the last chance to get everything ready ahead of the first round of the 2025 season at Oulton Park over the May Bank Holiday weekend.
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