July 3, 2024

Irwin Aiming To Get Back On Course At Snetterton

Following a disappointing outing at Knockhill where he surrendered the championship lead, Glenn Irwin aims to get his and the Hager PBM Ducati team’s title bid back on course as they head for Snetterton and round five of the 2024 Bennetts British Superbike Championship this weekend.

Due to a number of factors, the 34 year old from Northern Ireland was unable to add to his four victories so far this season at the Scottish track last month, so the plan is to get back to the early season form which saw him so dominant on Jordan and Frank Bird’s machine.
 
Irwin is just 11 points adrift of former teammate and rival Tommy Bridewell who now leads the series but is confident ahead of the weekend, especially as it’s a track where the Ducati excels at and which saw him on the podium last year, narrowly missing out on a victory.

Glenn won at the Norfolk track back in 2020 so is looking forward to the weekend and hopefully getting some more victories under his belt as the title race heads towards the busy mid-season. 
 
Glenn Irwin: “When you’ve had a difficult round, it’s always good to turn up at the next track fully motivated and keen to put things right. The conditions at Knockhill were some of the toughest I’ve ever raced in but I felt good and it was disappointing that the results didn’t quite go our way. But we are taking the positives out of that weekend and the plan is to start winning races again this weekend at Snetterton. We have gained a lot of information over the first few rounds and we are always working on areas where we can improve. There are a lot of things different from last year but we know what we need to do and there is a great mindset and belief in the team.”
 
Jordan Bird, Team Owner: “Snetterton is always a round we look forward to and we had a wonderful meeting there last season with three victories. It’s going to be a bit of a surreal and emotional weekend in some ways as the Snetterton round last year was the last one my dad attended before he passed away. We hope we can return to winning ways and get our championship challenge back on track after a frustrating weekend at Knockhill last time out.”
 
Pictures (courtesy of Double Red).

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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