September 30, 2024

Donington Park Victory Keeps Irwin In Title Chase

A victory, a podium and a fourth place finish at Donington Park this weekend saw Glenn Irwin and the Hager PBM Ducati team remain well in contention for the 2024 Bennetts British Superbike Championship with one round remaining.

After taking a solid sixth in qualifying, Glenn was hoping for more in Saturday’s opening 20-lap race, held in sunny, but cool conditions and he didn’t disappoint. With main championship rivals Kyle Ryde and Tommy Bridewell ahead of him, Glenn fought off the close attentions of his brother Andrew to finish third and claim 20 valuable points.
 
Sunday saw cool temperatures once again, this time under a cloudy sky for the remaining two races, and starting the 12-lap Sprint race from fourth on the grid, Glenn immediately slotted into third place behind Bridewell and Ryde. The trio were nose to tail throughout but Glenn grabbed the lead for the first time at half race distance, and although Ryde briefly got back in front at one point, Irwin went on to claim his eighth victory of the season.

That race saw Glenn set a new lap record which put him on pole position for the final race, held over 20 laps once more, from which he led for the first five laps before Ryde overhauled him. With temperatures dropping, as the race entered it’s final third, the Carrickfergus rider ran in fourth place, but before he could mount a podium challenge, the race was stopped due to a three-rider crash one lap short. 

As a result of a solid weekend, Irwin heads to the final round at Brands Hatch in third place, 46 points behind series leader Ryde and with 105 points still up for grabs, Glenn is still in with a shout of the title.
 
Glenn Irwin: “It’s been a really enjoyable weekend, and we haven’t lost any ground in the title race so we can be pleased with our results across the three races, especially the victory in the Sprint race. When you win a race like that, you want to follow it up with something similar, but the conditions suited our bike best in that race, rather than the final race when it was a lot cooler. I was having to use the tyre a lot to stay with Kyle, but eventually, I had to ease the pace but to come away with first, third and fourth means it was a good weekend. I’ve got an open mindset about the final round so we’ll re-focus and go again. To be in with a shout ahead of the final round is great and hats off to Jordan and Frank for the team they’ve put together, the work and effort is non-stop.”
 
Jordan Bird, Team co-owner: “It’s been a solid weekend, and we were hoping to go into the final round less than 50 points off the championship so to achieve that is mission accomplished. With 105 points available at Brands, it’s still all to play for and it’s BSB where, as we know, anything can happen. Glenn’s still very much in the mix and in the form of his life so to be in title contention going into the final round is something we can all be proud of. This time last year there was a lot of uncertainty around the team and people thought we couldn’t do it without Dad at the helm, but it shows how strong a team we are. I think Dad would be both impressed and proud to see where we are and what we’ve done this year.”
 
Bennetts British Superbike Championship race one (20 laps)
1 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha)
2 Tommy Bridewell (Honda) +2.071s
3 Glenn Irwin (Hager PBM Ducati) +8.689s
4 Andrew Irwin (Honda) +8.972s
5 Danny Kent (Yamaha) +9.710s
6 Charlie Nesbitt (Honda) +10.661s
 
Bennetts British Superbike Championship race two (12 laps)
1 Glenn Irwin (Hager PBM Ducati)
2 Tommy Bridewell (Honda) +0.241s
3 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha) +0.431s
4 Danny Kent (Yamaha) +0.741s
5 Charlie Nesbitt (Honda) +1.742s
6 Andrew Irwin (Honda) +3.067s
 
Bennetts British Superbike Championship race three (18 laps)
1 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha)
2 Danny Kent (Yamaha) +0.384s
3 Ryan Vickers (Yamaha) +1.727s
4 Glenn Irwin (Hager PBM Ducati) +3.042s
5 Tommy Bridewell (Honda) +4.521s
6 Andrew Irwin (Honda) +4.826s
 
Championship Points (after ten rounds)
1 Ryde 398pts
2 Bridewell 394
3 Irwin 352
4 Kent 290
5 Vickers 265
6 Iddon 261
 
Pictures (courtesy of Double Red): Glenn Irwin in action at Donington 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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