July 8, 2024

Double Delight For Irwin At Snetterton

Glenn Irwin and the Hager PBM Ducati team got back to winning ways in the British Superbike Championship at Snetterton at the weekend with a double victory on Sunday seeing them reclaim the lead in the title standings.

The weekend was affected considerably by weather conditions with heavy rain falling at times combined with cool temperatures throughout and Glenn encountered both in qualifying on Saturday where he ended up in 14th on the grid. The first race took place later in the afternoon with Glenn outside the points when the race was stopped due to an incident involving Rory Skinner.
 
Re-started over just five laps of the ‘300’ circuit, Glenn made it count and moved forward throughout eventually taking a solid fifth place. It gave him a much better start position for Sunday’s Sprint race, and he quickly opened up a second lead over Kyle Ryde only for the race to again be stopped. Once again re-started over five laps, Glenn delivered an identical ride and aided by the fastest lap of the race, ultimately took the chequered flag from Tommy Bridewell by 1.4s.

The fastest lap gave him pole position for the final race of the weekend, which saw the best of the conditions and went the full 16-lap distance. A slightly sluggish start saw him drop to fourth on the opening lap, but he steadily moved forward and took the lead for the first time on the seventh lap. From there on in, his lead over Christian Iddon and then Bridewell was never more than a tenth of a second, but he determinedly kept them at bay to take the victory by 0.125s.
 
The results over the three races saw him lift the prestigious Race of Aces trophy but also re-take the championship lead on 177 points, four ahead of Bridewell.


  • After taking ill, joint team owner Jordan Bird was admitted to a local hospital on Saturday and had an operation today (Sunday). The team wishes her a speedy recovery and thanks everyone for the good wishes. 


 
Glenn Irwin: "I was really pleased with both wins and it’s good to be back in the championship lead. I’ve probably lost a little bit this last month, but we continue to work hard and massive thanks to the team for the bike they gave me. We experimented a little bit in the first race and found some areas that worked well and others where we could still improve but I rode with clarity and resilience, and it was a well-executed victory. The weather conditions changed for the second race which meant I struggled with grip especially in the second half of the race and I lost the front several times. I had to dig deep and did a really good last lap so fair play to Tommy and Christian as they were there all the way. I love racing against Tommy as he’s like me and never gives up. It’s nice to get the Race of Aces trophy as well so a big thanks to the team and get well soon Jordan."
 
Frank Bird, Team co-owner: “What a bounceback weekend that was and just what we needed after a difficult Knockhill. I’m super happy and proud of the team and Glenn rode brilliantly all weekend and in the wet conditions did what he needed to do and brought the bike home in a solid fifth place. The double today was the icing on the cake and shows all the work we’re doing on both a race weekend and behind the scenes. We got the rewards this weekend so fair play to the team, well done again to Glenn and thanks to all the sponsors for their commitment and enabling us to go racing. We’ve started another wave so let’s keep riding it into Brands, another strong track for us. Well done to everyone and best wishes of course to Jordan, hopefully the wins will have cheered her up!”


 
British Superbike Championship race one (5 laps)
1 Storm Stacey (Kawasaki)
2 Lewis Rollo (Aprilia) +0.222s
3 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha) +6.369s
4 Jason O’Halloran (Kawasaki) +9.297s
5 Glenn Irwin (Hager PBM Ducati) +10.742s
6 Christian Iddon (Ducati) +15.906s
 
British Superbike Championship race two (5 laps)
1 Glenn Irwin (Hager PBM Ducati)
2 Tommy Bridewell (Honda) +1.487s
3 Christian Iddon (Ducati) +2.163s
4 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha) +2.197s
5 Andrew Irwin (Honda) +2.642s
6 Danny Kent (Yamaha) +2.682s
 
British Superbike Championship race three (16 laps)
1 Glenn Irwin (Hager PBM Ducati)
2 Tommy Bridewell (Honda) +0.125s
3 Christian Iddon (Ducati) +0.740s
4 Danny Kent (Yamaha) +1.122s
5 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha) +1.322s
6 Andrew Irwin (Honda) +2.204s
 
Championship Points (after five rounds)
1 Irwin 177pts
2 Bridewell 173
3 Iddon 156
4 Kent 147
= Ryde 147
6 O’Halloran 108



Pictures (courtesy of Double Red): Glenn Irwin in action at Snetterton.

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.
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