BeerMonster Ducati Confident Ahead of Oulton Park
Following a successful opening round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Silverstone over Easter, BeerMonster Ducati riders Glenn Irwin and Tommy Bridewell head for round two at Oulton Park this bank holiday weekend in confident mood.
Bridewell, from Devizes in Wiltshire, holds second place in the standings following his triple podium in round one where he backed up a pair of second place finishes in the opening two races with a third in race three to lie just two points behind early season leader Josh Brookes.
Meanwhile Irwin, from Ballyclare in County Antrim, is just three points adrift of his teammate after he followed up a podium finish in race two at Silverstone with victory in the final race meaning both of Paul Bird’s riders are looking to continue their great start to the season at his Lake District-based team’s local round.
The Cheshire track has been a particular favourite of Bridewell’s in recent years with three wins and an additional five podiums in his last dozen Oulton Park races, all aboard Ducati machinery, whereas Irwin scored a podium finish there for Honda last season on his way to runner-up in the title race.
Aboard the F23-specification BeerMonster Ducati V4R machines, both riders tested there recently but despite the poor weather, they got valuable data which will stand them in good stead this weekend as they look to continue their successful starts to the 2023 campaign.
Tommy Bridewell: “I really love riding at Oulton Park, it’s the circuit where I’ve enjoyed many of my successes in the past and I can’t tell you how excited I am at the prospect of racing the BeerMonster Ducati F23 around there this weekend. We had a good, productive test and I’m fairly strong round there so it’s all looking positive. I was happy enough to get off to a good start and score some solid points at Silverstone but now I need to transform that into wins and I’m confident we can do that. It’s not going to be easy, but we know we have a great base setting with the new bike and hopefully we can continue the good form from the opening round.”
Glenn Irwin: “I’m looking forward to the weekend and to get back on my BeerMonster Ducati F23. We had a good test at Oulton Park a couple of weeks ago and got some important information which will make us stronger this weekend. I always enjoy riding there and to end up just a tenth of a second on the Honda behind Tommy’s Ducati last year was really good, especially as I know how strong the Ducatis can be. There will be a lot of riders in the mix I suspect but I’m confident of the package I’ve got which I’m still learning from. The plan is to give it our best shot during practice and qualifying and be fighting for the victories in all three races.”
John Mowatt, Team Co-ordinator: “We had a brilliant start to the season at Silverstone with a win and four additional podiums which is just what we needed after the past couple of seasons, but that’s behind us now and we need to focus on the job in hand at Oulton Park. It’s our team's and sponsors’ local track so we are hoping to be challenging again at the front as both riders are good around there. We know the BeerMonster Ducati F23 will be a weapon in their hands, so the aim is to come away with a strong set of results again and to carry on the early season momentum.”
Images (courtesy of Double Red): Glenn Irwin (2) and Tommy Bridewell (46) hope for more good results at Oulton Park this bank holiday weekend.
