May 1, 2022

Brookes Just Misses Oulton Park Podium

After a difficult opening Bennetts British Superbike Championship round two weeks ago at Silverstone, Josh Brookes put a smile back on the faces of the MCE Ducati team this afternoon as he posted a fine fourth place finish in the opening race of round two at Oulton Park.

The result saw the Australian former double champion pick up a confidence-boosting 13 points whilst teammate Tom Sykes battled to 15th place for the Penrith-based team after a challenging race saw him lose ground in the early laps.

 

Dry conditions yesterday gave way to rain for qualifying this afternoon but both Brookes and Yorkshireman Sykes benefitted with strong pace in the wet around the 2.69-mile circuit and the two riders looked strong as they advanced into the crucial Q2 session which determined the grid for the afternoon’s race.

Indeed, both riders ran in the top six for the majority of the 12-minute session and it was Brookes who shone the most on the factory-supported MCE Ducati Panigale V4R to take second place and a front row position. Former WSBK champion Sykes ran similar pace for much of the session but was unlucky to get shuffled back to 11th after a late flurry of quick laps from other riders.

 

Three hours later, the conditions were again dry for the race and although Josh slipped back to fourth on the opening lap, he was well in contention for a podium position as he battled with Rory Skinner, Kyle Ryde, and Peter Hickman for second place.

 

The battle looked like it would go all the way to the chequered flag, but the race was stopped early, on the 12th of the scheduled 14 laps, after a crash meaning Josh, who was getting stronger as the race wore on, had to settle for fourth place.

 

Sykes, meanwhile, suffered in the early stages when he dropped back to 16th and he was unable to recover any ground; by the time he moved up to 15th, the group ahead of him had pulled clear and he missed out on fighting for a potential top ten finish.

 

Josh Brookes: “We made a good step forward in FP3 and the lap times were both a lot quicker and more consistent meaning I was closer to where I need to be. I’m still a few tenths down on being able to fight for the win and we need to get dialled in earlier in the weekend as you can’t afford to be way back in the pack on the opening day. But we made good improvements and I was getting stronger and getting myself into a position to attack with a podium on the cards, but the red flag ended the race early. Fourth is a lot more like it so we’ll look to improve again tomorrow and get on the podium.”

 

Tom Sykes: “We’re running with a few limitations at the moment with the main issue being not being able to get on the gas like we need to. The bike’s a bit unstable and if you can’t use the gas when and how you need to, it means you lose ground each lap and in the dry that equates to quite a lot of time. I was strong in the wet and felt comfortable on the bike and felt unlucky not to be higher up the grid, but I didn’t make the greatest of starts and it’s hard to claw the gap back. Some of the boys are a bit special round here but the team are working hard, and we’ll aim to be a lot stronger tomorrow.”

 

John Mowatt, Team Co-ordinator: “It’s been a bit more promising so far this weekend and Josh got a good result and some good points on the board. A strong performance in the wet qualifying session was a good boost and, again, it emphasised the importance of being on at least the front three rows. He lost a bit of time in the first half of the race, but he rode well to close the gap to the second and third placed riders and going into the final laps, he was definitely in with a shout of the podium. For Tom, he was unlucky to drop down to 11th in qualifying when he could have been on the front row with Josh and a bad start didn’t help his race. That meant the pack got away and instead of fighting it out with the group in sixth to tenth, he was instead in 15th. We’ll make a few changes overnight though to try and improve the lap times further and help him get higher up the leaderboard.”

 

Sunday’s races, held over the longer distance of 18 laps, are scheduled to get underway at 13:30 and 16:30.

 

Bennetts British Superbike Championship race one (11 laps)

1 Bradley Ray (Yamaha)

2 Rory Skinner (Kawasaki)

3 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha)

4 Josh Brookes (MCE Ducati)

5 Peter Hickman (BMW)

6 Tommy Bridewell (Ducati)

15 Tom Sykes (MCE Ducati)

 

Championship standings

1 Glenn Irwin 80pts

2 Ryde 62

= Skinner 62

4 Ray 61

5 Andrew Irwin 41

6 O’Halloran 40

12 Brookes 21

17 Sykes 5

 

 

Pictures courtesy of Double Red: Josh Brookes (25) and Tom Sykes (66).

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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