October 3, 2021

Triple Podium Success At Donington For Title-Hunter Iddon

VisionTrack Ducati rider Christian Iddon thrust himself firmly into contention for the 2021 Bennetts British Superbike Championship crown following a superb hat-trick of podiums at Donington Park this weekend.

After a superb third place in yesterday’s wet race at the penultimate round of the series, Iddon followed that up with another third place in today’s opening race held in dry conditions before producing his best result of the weekend with a scintillating ride into second place in the wet third race of the weekend.

 

The result is that with just one round and three races remaining, Iddon has moved up to third place in the standings but importantly, has reduced the gap to the leader to just 15 points ahead of the final round in two weeks’ time at Brands Hatch.

 

However, it was another tough day though for teammate Josh Brookes with just an 11th place finish to his name meaning he can no longer retain the title he won twelve months ago.

After the difficult conditions of yesterday, the weather was thankfully dry and sunny, albeit still cool for today’s first race, with the opening race seeing Josh and Christian line up in third and fourth on the grid respectively.

 

Both riders made good starts with Tyneside-based Iddon slotting into fourth and Bedfordshire-based Brookes holding station in fourth aboard their respective factory-backed VisionTrack Ducati Panigale V4RRs.

 

By half race distance, Iddon had made his way up to second place, but Brookes struggled with a technical issue and dropped down the order and at the flag, Iddon secured third place with Aussie Brookes a disappointing 11th. 

 

Iddon had the better starting position for the third and final race of the weekend, starting on the second row with Josh a further row back but after a heavy rain shower, conditions were again tricky with the race cut down to 15 laps.

 

An excellent start saw Iddon slot into second place behind Saturday’s race winner Gino Rea, but he was soon flying the flag single handedly for Paul Bird’s Penrith-based team after Brookes crashed out at Craner Curves, fortunately without injury.

 

As the race wore on, Iddon and Rea were comfortably the quickest two riders on track but in the closing stages the Suzuki rider was able to up his pace and take the win. However, Christian took an excellent second and with series leader Tarran Mackenzie retiring early, he closed to within 15 points of his Yamaha rival with all to play for at the final round.

 

Christian Iddon: “It’s been a good day and with second and third place finishes today, it’s been fantastic for the championship. I went with the hard tyre for the first race as I wasn’t sure if the softer tyre would last but the wind was really strong, and it was a tough race. Conditions were again tricky in the final race, and it was very similar to how it went on Saturday with Gino setting a good pace. I sat behind him and we were quite a bit quicker than the rest of the field. A win was on my mind, but he was really committed in the final two laps so fair play to him. With three podiums this weekend, it’s been superb for our title aspirations and we’re well and truly in the mix heading into the final round.”

 

Josh Brookes: “I’m lost for words to be honest with how today has gone and we’re still struggling with the issues that have blighted us all year. If I ride at the level that’s comfortable, I finish outside the top ten and if I ride with where I think the bike should be, I crash. On the odd occasion this season, I’ve been able to get away with it and get some sort of acceptable results and the small improvements have masked over the fundamental problems. It’s been a tough day.”

 

Johnny Mowatt, Team Co-ordinator: “It’s been another good day for Christian and with three podiums from three races, he’s done a good job this weekend. We erred on the side of caution in the first race today and went with the harder tyre, but he had a decent set up in both the wet and dry and it’s very much game on in the championship. Josh suffered with a lack of grip again today and unfortunately, he’s now out of the title race after his two crashes this weekend. He has a lot of pride though so will be determined to finish his season strongly at Brands and he could yet have a big part to play in the championship. We’ll go to Brands as a team and work as a team to get the best results possible. There’s been plenty of twists and plenty of drama this weekend so I’m expecting the final round to be the same!”

 

The final round takes place at Brands Hatch on October 15-17.

 

Bennetts British Superbike Championship race two (20 laps)

1 Tarran Mackenzie (Yamaha)

2 Danny Buchan (BMW) 

3 Christian Iddon (VisionTrack Ducati)

4 Gino Rea (Suzuki)

5 Lee Jackson (Kawasaki)

6 Kyle Ryde (BMW)

11 Josh Brookes (VisionTrack Ducati)

 

Bennetts British Superbike Championship race three (15 laps)

1 Gino Rea (Suzuki)

2 Christian Iddon (VisionTrack Ducati)

3 Lee Jackson (Kawasaki)

4 Tommy Bridewell (Ducati)

5 Andrew Irwin (BMW)

6 Ryan Vickers (Kawasaki)

DNF Josh Brookes (VisionTrack Ducati)

 

Championship Points

1 Mackenzie 1127pts

2 O’Halloran 1117

3 Iddon 1112

4 Bridewell 1106

5 Buchan 1061

6 Hickman 1059

7 Brookes 1047

 

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

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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