April 30, 2023

Irwin Romps To Oulton Park Podium, Bridewell Fifth

The BeerMonster Ducati team’s strong start to the 2023 Bennetts British Superbike Championship continued at Oulton Park today with Glenn Irwin and Tommy Bridewell finishing in third and fifth place respectively in the opening race of the weekend.

With yesterday’s opening free practice session seeing dry weather, the subsequent action today saw mixed conditions at the Cheshire track and with a damp track for this afternoon’s qualifying session, it was Glenn who fared best in fourth on the F23-specification V4R BeerMonster Ducati with Bridewell down the order in 15th on the fifth row.
 
Conditions had improved slightly for the 12-lap BikeSocial Sprint Race and a strong start to the race saw Glenn complete the first lap in third place as he immediately latched onto the back wheel of leaders Josh Brookes and Leon Haslam.

The trio quickly opened up a two-second gap over the rest of the field and although there was never more than half a second between them, overtaking opportunities were limited. Irwin went to overtake Haslam on the tenth of 12 laps, but he wouldn’t get another chance as rain began to fall with the race being stopped on the penultimate lap.
 
That meant Irwin was awarded third with the points putting him in joint second in the championship with Bridewell, who put in a storming ride from his lowly grid position, coming home in fifth. Aided by the fastest lap of the race, which will put him in pole position for tomorrow’s first race, Bridewell continually moved forward and took over fifth place just after half race distance. That was as high as he was able to climb but it puts him in a much stronger position for tomorrow’s races.
 
Glenn Irwin: “It’s good to get another podium but it’s also a bit frustrating as we had the potential to have done better than third. The three of us at the front had strengths and weaknesses in different areas so there was a bit of a yo-yo effect without any of us having an opportunity to overtake anywhere. I had a chance on the tenth lap, which, on hindsight, I should have taken with the red flag but that’s racing. The bike felt good and the longer races tomorrow should suit us more and whilst it’s good to have taken some points from Tommy today, I’ll be looking to take some off Josh tomorrow.”
 
Tommy Bridewell: “The result was OK and I’m happy and disappointed in equal measures. I’m happy to have fought my way through to fifth but that’s what I expected and to be honest, I thought I’d have been able to fight my way up to the podium battle. I needed the front three to be swapping positions as that would have allowed me to close up, but they were very much ‘follow my leader’. I’d also used a lot of the tyre to come through the field but pole position for tomorrow will make things a lot better for me.”
 
Johnny Mowatt, Team Co-ordinator: “With sketchy conditions throughout qualifying and in the race, we are happy enough with a podium for Glenn and Tommy coming through to secure valuable points in fifth. We’ve got some changes to make overnight and hopefully the weather is a little more settled tomorrow so we can continue challenging for podiums and perhaps a win or two. We know the bike is good around Oulton Park, so we are confident going into the two remaining races at our local round.”
 
Bennetts British Superbike Championship BikeSocial Sprint race (12 laps)
1 Josh Brookes (BMW)
2 Leon Haslam (BMW)
3 Glenn Irwin (BeerMonster Ducati)
4 Peter Hickman (BMW)
5 Tommy Bridewell (BeerMonster Ducati)
6 Andrew Irwin (Honda)
 
Championship positions
1 Brookes 66
2 Bridewell 57
= Irwin 57
4 Ryde 48
5 Haslam 46
6 O’Halloran 35
 
Images courtesy of Double Red: Glenn Irwin (2) and Tommy Bridewell (46) in action at Oulton Park.

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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