September 17, 2023

Clean Sweep For BeerMonster Ducati At Oulton Park

Glenn Irwin and Tommy Bridewell served up a masterclass in riding in the two Bennetts British Superbike Championship races at Oulton Park today with the duo taking a win each to strengthen their stranglehold on this year's series.

The victories made it eight each for the teammates for the Penrith-based PBM team as they sit just half a point apart in the championship standings, continuing to honour their late team owner Paul Bird in the best possible manner.


The opening race of the day held over 18 laps saw Tommy again line up in pole position with Glenn starting from fifth and they were quickly running in line astern in first and second place ahead of Kyle Ryde (Yamaha), Leon Haslam (BMW) and Lee Jackson (Kawasaki).

In a similar pattern to yesterday’s BikeSocial Sprint race which Irwin won, it looked like it would come down to a last lap shoot-out between the pair but a safety car period on lap 14 brought the pack together and meant the race would be decided over the final three laps.


Drama followed, however, as Tommy was deemed to have made an incorrect re-start which saw him given a penalty and despite crossing the line first, he was ultimately demoted to sixth which handed Glenn the win from Jackson and Ryde. It also saw Irwin re-take the championship lead by 3.5 points ahead of Bridewell.


The final race saw the pairing again go head-to-head throughout the 18 laps and although Glenn briefly led early on, it was Tommy who hit the front and controlled proceedings. He continually kept his teammate at bay and pulled away in the closing laps to win by 1.1s and make up for the earlier disappointment with the result seeing the team claim their sixth 1-2 of the season.


Glenn Irwin: “I couldn’t have expected any more from the weekend and with two wins and a second, it’s been unbelievable. There was obviously a lot of emotion, but everyone handled it well and put on a show and it pleases me how hard the guys worked and how I rode all weekend. To come back from 34 points adrift a few races ago to be in the lead is really good especially as I’ve had one additional DNF but hats off to Tommy in the final race. He rode perfectly in the final laps and when I saw +0.8 on my board, I settled for second and 22 points so with two wins and a second, it’s a great start to the final three rounds. I never expected to pull 15 points back this weekend and I have a lot to be grateful for.”


Tommy Bridewell: “It’s been a tough weekend, not just for me but for the whole team and everyone involved, and it’s been lovely to see the deserved tributes from the BSB paddock to Paul. I felt like I deserved two wins today and didn’t think I’d done anything to deserve a penalty, but I accept it and although I lost some points to Glenn I’m not overly concerned as I know how strong we’ll be at Donington and Brands Hatch. Having said that, it was nice to respond with the victory in the final race and whenever I wanted to, I could drop into the low 34s and when I did, my lead increased. Glenn was riding well all weekend and it’s very much ‘game on’ in the championship and that win is dedicated to Paul.”


Johnny Mowatt, Team Co-ordinator: “We could quite well have come away with a 1-2 in both races today, but we can understand why the decision was made to give the penalty although it was obviously a bitter pill for Tommy to swallow. His misfortune meant Glenn got the win, but Tommy made up for his disappointment in the final race and the two boys have been dominant in all three races so hats off to them. They rode away from everyone and that’s credit to them and their respective crews and you could see just how evenly matched they were all weekend, as they have been all season. As a team, we couldn’t have done any more this weekend so hopefully we’ve done the Birdman proud and he’s looking down on us with a smile on his face.”


Bennetts British Superbike Championship race two (18 laps)


1 Glenn Irwin (BeerMonster Ducati)


2 Lee Jackson (Kawasaki)


3 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha)


4 Leon Haslam (BMW)


5 Josh Brookes (BMW)


6 Tommy Bridewell (BeerMonster Ducati)



Bennetts British Superbike Championship race three (18 laps)


1 Tommy Bridewell (BeerMonster Ducati)


2 Glenn Irwin (BeerMonster Ducati)


3 Lee Jackson (Kawasaki)


4 Leon Haslam (BMW)


5 Josh Brookes (BMW)


6 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha)


Championship Standings


1 Irwin 360.5pts


2 Bridewell 360


3 Ryde 300


4 Haslam 283


5 Jackson 280.5


6 O’Halloran 276.5 


Pictures courtesy of Double Red: Glenn Irwin (2) and Tommy Bridewell (46) at Oulton Park

HAGER PBM DUCATI FIRED UP AHEAD OF OULTON PARK SEASON OPENER

May 1, 2025
HAGER PBM Ducati and rider Glenn Irwin are all set and ready for the start of the 2025 Bennetts British Superbike season, as the championship roars into action this weekend at Oulton Park. The team will head to its local circuit in Cheshire for the May Bank Holiday weekend, keen to get a strong start to its 2025 campaign and looking to emulate its success from two visits there last year, when Irwin celebrated four victories from six race starts. The opening round follows a solid pre-season testing programme for the team, with Irwin topping the timesheets in two of the three R&G Official tests. Over the three events, the squad worked through a busy schedule, testing a host of new components for its Ducati Panigale V4R and while not specifically chasing lap times, were never far from the top the board. Now, as they prepare for the first round at one of their strongest tracks, the team and Irwin are feeling quietly confident they can hit the ground running and emerge from Oulton Park on Bank Holiday Monday with a strong haul of points to get their championship off to a flying start. Glenn Irwin: “It’s fantastic to be finally going into the opening round at Oulton Park – it’s almost seven months since the last season ended so it’s been a long wait. But now it’s time to go and put everything we’ve done, everything we’ve learnt over the off-season into practice. “We’ve had a great testing programme, there’s a new addition on my side with my rider spotter which has been a nice refresh and I’ve also made some small adjustments to my own riding style. “The team has brought some new items this year which have been nice, not performance parts but parts which can equate to performance…it’s not as simple as an extra 10 bhp or anything like that, but it’s nice to go racing with something new. “I can’t wait for the weekend and to get going. My motivation is high, so let’s go and kick-off the year with the best possible points haul for the Hager PBM Ducati team.” Frank Bird Jnr, Team Co-owner: “It’s finally time to get going. A lot of hard work has been put in over this winter, the team has had three solid tests so we should be right in the mix from the word go – that’s the plan, anyway. “It’s felt like a long wait so it’s mega that the first round is finally here. I’d like to thank all our sponsors for helping us get here and we’re all hoping we can put on a good show and bring back some trophies. “It’s fantastic to be starting the season at Oulton Park, particularly on a Bank Holiday weekend. A lot of our sponsors are north-based, it’s also our local round as a family too, so it’s obviously an important one for us. Here’s to a strong weekend and kicking-off the season with three great race results.” The 2025 Bennetts British Superbike action opens with free practice on Saturday, May 3 followed by Qualifying and Race One on Sunday, May 4. The weekend will draw to a close following two further races on Bank Holiday Monday, May 5.

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.
More Posts