May 21, 2022

Tough Day At Donington For MCE Ducati

The MCE Ducati team endured a challenging opening Bennetts British Superbike Championship race at Donington Park today with Tom Sykes finishing in 11th place and former double BSB champion Josh Brookes ending up in 13th position.

The duo enjoyed mixed fortunes across the free practice sessions and that meant both riders had to take part in the opening Q1 session although both duly lapped quicker than what they had done all weekend, finishing the session first and second to comfortably progress to the main Q2 session to set the grid for the opening eBay sprint race.

 

It was Huddersfield-born Sykes who was the quicker in Q2, briefly running in third place, and although he ultimately had to settle for seventh, it was by far his best qualifying performance of the season on the factory-supported MCE Insurance Ducati Panigale V4R. For Australian Brookes though, it was a more challenging session and he finished in 16th which meant a sixth-row start.

Conditions remained good for the 20-lap race although a strong wind remained, and the first lap saw Tom and Josh slot into sixth and 16th respectively. The race proved to be a battle for both riders and although Tom held on to a top ten position for the first half of the race, he took the chequered flag in 11th. Josh, meanwhile, fought his way up to 13th for three hard-earned points.

 

Tom Sykes: “We are making improvements in certain areas, which could be seen in qualifying and had it not been for a yellow flag costing me three tenths we could have been on the front row. The limitations we’ve had in previous rounds are still there and are ultimately holding me back. It’s really frustrating as I could see the leaders ahead of me but couldn’t go with them whilst having had previous success in the past at this circuit, it gives us more of a reference. We’re not able to show the potential of either myself, the bike, or the team at the moment but we’ll keep working hard to get to where we want to be.”

 

Josh Brookes: “Certain aspects of today have been promising but others not so and after going well in Q1, I didn’t string the laps together in Q2 which ultimately compromised my grid position. I also suffered in the early stages of the race as there was something on my visor which was really distracting. I hadn’t done the helmet prep myself so removing the tear-offs didn’t alter the issue and I dropped back in the early laps. I got going a bit in the second half of the race but am still struggling for rear grip. We’ve been putting more weight on the rear to get better grip but have exhausted all those options now so need to maybe go the other way to see if we can improve and get a better feeling.”

 

Johnny Mowatt, Team Co-ordinator: “Qualifying went well for Tom and it was nice to see him higher up the grid and closer to where we need to be whilst Josh also strung some good laps together in Q1. However, the starting positions are still hurting us and whilst I’ve said it before, when you’re starting down the pack, you get mired in battles and can’t ride the bike the way it needs to be ridden. That, in turn, allows the quick guys at the front to get away so we need to improve. It’s disappointing to only score a handful of points but we’ll look to make changes for tomorrow’s races and get the boys higher up.”

 

Bennetts British Superbike Championship eBay Sprint race 1 (20 laps)

1 Kyle Ryde (Yamaha)

2 Jason O’Halloran (Yamaha)

3 Bradley Ray (Yamaha)

4 Lee Jackson (Kawasaki)

5 Glenn Irwin (Honda)

6 Christian Iddon (Suzuki)

11 Tom Sykes (MCE Ducati)

13 Josh Brookes (MCE Ducati)

 

Current standings

1 Ray 118pts

2 Irwin 107

3 Ryde 106

4 Skinner 95

5 Jackson 93

6 O’Halloran 80

12 Brookes 38

14 Sykes 18

 

 

Pictures courtesy of Double Red: Josh Brookes (25) and Tom Sykes (66).

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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