September 5, 2021

Iddon Claims Showdown Place As Brookes Hits Form

The VisionTrack Ducati team scored a trio of top six finishes at Snetterton in Norfolk today with round seven of the 2021 Bennetts British Superbike Championship seeing reigning champion Josh Brookes take fourth and sixth place to keep his Showdown hopes alive and Christian Iddon getting back on track with a strong fifth place to claim his place as a Title Fighter.

With the duo having had mixed fortunes yesterday, this was reflected in their grid positions for the opening 16-lap race, Brookes starting from second and in the middle of the front row for his best grid position of the season but Iddon back on the sixth row after his first lap crash.

 

With good conditions around the Snetterton 300 circuit, Aussie Brookes consolidated his second place on the factory-supported Ducati Panigale V4RR for the first couple of laps with Iddon moving up to 12th, but Brookes then ran wide on a number of occasions which dropped him back down the order to eighth.

It was a frenetic race for all concerned but by lap ten, Josh was back up to fifth and a good overtaking manoeuvre on Gino Rea on lap 14 enabled him to take his second fourth place finish of the weekend. Meanwhile, Tyneside-based Iddon fought his way up to tenth only for a slight coming together with Danny Buchan towards the end of the race dropped him back a place to 11th.

 

The final race of the weekend saw Brookes start from fifth and Iddon 11th, but the race was stopped on the ninth lap following a crash. Re-started over just five laps, it was a hectic race, but it was Iddon who came out on top for Paul Bird’s Penrith-based team with a strong fifth place. Bedfordshire-based Brookes had a bit more of difficult race but after dropping back to tenth, he fought his way back up to sixth at the chequered flag.

 

Iddon remains in fourth place overall claiming his place in the Showdown with Brookes now up to tenth and just 13 points behind eighth place with the final four Showdown position still to be decided at the next round at Silverstone.

 

Josh Brookes: “It’s been a hectic weekend and I seem to be around all the on-track drama that’s happening at the moment. All the moments and crashes other riders are having seem to be happening all around me, so I’d like to be away from all that at the next round. Looking at the positives, I’ve been able to fight a lot more this weekend and am more at ease with the bike which is translating into good race pace so two fourths and a sixth is another step in the right direction. We had the potential to do better this weekend, but the results at least mean I’ve put myself in with a shout of the Showdown and having been in it every year, it would be nice to do so again.”

 

Christian Iddon: “I was a bit disappointed with 11th in the first race but, at the same time, I needed a finish after therun we’ve been on. I felt pretty racy up until about mid-race and I lost a bit of front end feel in the latter stages whilst the harder tyre didn’t quite work as I’d hoped. I switched to the softer tyre for the second race and refined both the electronics and chassis and that enabled me to be more aggressive in the first few laps. After the red flag, it was a five-lap dash which is always a bit hairy but the little changes we’d made helped the bike be better again and although a podium may have been possible, it wasn’t to be, and we took the fifth. It’s obviously not where I want to be finishing or need to be, but we’ll take what we can, and it’s stopped the rot a little bit, so we’ll build on this.”

 

Johnny Mowatt, Team Co-ordinator: “We showed a lot of potential in practice and felt that it was going to be one of our stronger meetings, but it wasn’t to be, and we don’t seem to be getting the rub of the green at the moment. We keep getting caught up in other people’s incidents in areas where we shouldn’t be and there’s been so many instances of ‘wrong place, wrong time’. Both riders got beat up in both races but on the plus side, Josh closed the gap to the top eight and made good strides forward whilst the fifth place in the second race will be good for Christian’s confidence. The Yamahas are performing really well at the moment and are having a year like we did in 2019 but we need to up our game and stop their dominance so hopefully, things will turn our way next time out.”

 

The next round takes place at Silverstone next weekend.

 

Bennetts British Superbike Championship race two (16 laps)

1 Jason O’Halloran (Yamaha)

2 Tarran Mackenzie (Yamaha)

3 Tommy Bridewell (Ducati)

4 Josh Brookes (VisionTrack Ducati)

5 Gino Rea (Suzuki)

6 Lee Jackson (Kawasaki)

11 Christian Iddon (VisionTrack Ducati)

 

Bennetts British Superbike Championship race three (5 laps)

1 Tarran Mackenzie (Yamaha)

2 Tommy Bridewell (Ducati)

3 Jason O’Halloran (Yamaha)

4 Gino Rea (Suzuki)

5 Christian Iddon (VisionTrack Ducati)
6 Josh Brookes (VisionTrack Ducati)

 

Championship standings (after seven rounds)

1 O’Halloran 399pts

2 Mackenzie 293

3 Bridewell 261

4 Iddon 239

5 Hickman 224

6 Buchan 174

10 Brookes 141

 

Pictures courtesy of Double Red: Christian Iddon (21) and Josh Brookes (25).

ROUND TWO BECKONS FOR HAGER PBM DUCATI

May 14, 2025
THE Hager PBM Ducati squad is heading to Donington Park this weekend as the second round of the 2025 Bennetts British Superbike Championship roars into action at the iconic track. The team and rider Glenn Irwin will be looking to build on their success at the opening round, where the Northern Irishman clinched two second place finishes, putting him third in the championship chase but equal on 32 points with his rivals sitting first and second. It’s been a tough fortnight where the racing community has mourned the loss of riders Owen Jenner and Shane Richardson – and the team has been particularly affected by the death of Owen, a close friend of owners Jordan, Frank and other team members. Now, hopes are high that the team and Irwin can deliver a string of podium finishes this weekend, with performances which both boys would be proud of. Glenn Irwin, rider: “Looking ahead to the weekend you almost feel a little bit guilty, because obviously we all want to continue to pay our respects to Owen and Shane’s families, and when we look back at Oulton Park, the whole event is overshadowed by this sadness. “But if I was to look just purely at the riding side of things and the teamwork, I felt we did a good job. We had some difficult moments but we did well to come from 14 th to second in Race One and particularly Race two, after four laps we were 3.3 off and eight laps later to only be 0.1 off the win was very pleasing. “I think as riders, we all know what we achieved in terms of race pace over the two races, we only ever took time out of Bradley (Ray) and Leon (Haslam) and for me that was confidence inspiring. I think we fired our own warning shots without winning races which is important for our own confidence and important to cement ourselves in the thoughts of our rivals as well. “This weekend and the whole championship in general is going to be close. The three of us who were in it at Oulton will be there, I expect Kyle (Ryde) to be there and Danny Kent to also join the party this weekend…it’s going to be a good one.” Jordan Bird, Team Co-owner: “As usual, we are ready for business this weekend - although this one is a little different. We race at Donington Park for Owen and Shane. “Of course, we have a job to do but our thoughts will never be far away from both of them and we continue to send our love and best wishes to their families. “We know it’s going to be a tough weekend in many ways for the team and for the paddock as a whole but we look forward to doing the best job we possibly can in memory of Owen and Shane.”  Round Two of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship gets underway at Donington Park this Friday, May 16 with two free practice sessions ahead of Qualifying and Race One on Saturday, followed by two further races on Sunday, May 18.

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.
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