2019 British Superbike Championship Round 8 – Cadwell Park Qualifying Times
Josh Brookes claimed his third pole position of the 2019 Bennetts British Superbike Championship season at Cadwell Park, setting a time under the existing lap record to put the Be Wiser Ducati at the top of the times by 0.224s.
Brookes set the pace in the final Q3 stage after topping the free practice times yesterday as the 2015 champion bids to close down the Podium Points deficit to championship leader Scott Redding in tomorrow’s two races in Lincolnshire.
Josh Brookes
“I’m really pleased. We’ve had a couple of poor years here recently and I haven’t really been able to do anything that satisfying, so to have the bike that feels the way it does underneath me is is great, I don’t need to follow anybody to do the lap, I can do it on my own. The bike feels like it’s doing what I want it to do and we’re doing the lap times that prove it. I can’t be more pleased for myself but obviously I’ve got to thank everybody involved in the team, all the sponsors and my mechanics that do the work, and in front of a fantastic crowd here on a Saturday afternoon.”
A few Aussie fans in the crowd at Cadwell Park
However, the biggest celebration came from the Buildbase Suzuki team as Bradley Ray returned to the front row for the first time this season in Datatag Qualifying, nudging ahead of Tommy Bridewell on the Oxford Racing Ducati to complete the front row.
BSB Qualifying
Redding heads the second row on the second of the Be Wiser Ducatis ahead of Danny Buchan, who had topped the final free practice session this morning for FS-3 Racing Kawasaki.
Jason O’Halloran was sixth fastest on the leading McAMS Yamaha, holding off Dan Linfoot who overcame a crash in Q1 to return to the top nine for Santander Salt TAG Yamaha.
Tyco BMW completed the top ten with Christian Iddon narrowly ahead of Glenn Irwin as Honda Racing’s Andrew Irwin just got pushed outside of the top nine after Q2.
Bennetts British Superbike Championship Cadwell Park, Datatag Qualifying Times
Josh Brookes (Be Wiser Ducati)
Bradley Ray (Buildbase Suzuki) +0.224s
Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Racing Ducati) +0.276s
Scott Redding (Be Wiser Ducati) +0.294s
Danny Buchan (FS-3 Racing Kawasaki) +0.345s
Jason O’Halloran (McAMS Yamaha) +0.779s
Dan Linfoot (Santander Salt TAG Yamaha) +0.884s
Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW) +1.024s
Glenn Irwin (Tyco BMW) +1.070s
Bennetts British Superbike Championship Cadwell Park, Datatag Qualifying Times
2019 British Superbike Championship Round 8 – Cadwell Park – Friday Practice
Josh Brookes led the opening Bennetts British Superbike Championship free practice times at Cadwell Park on Friday as the Be Wiser Ducati rider got his weekend off to a flying start at the Lincolnshire circuit.
Brookes was back on top in the opening free practice session at Cadwell Park in the first session of the day, heading off the FS-3 Racing Kawasaki of Danny Buchan by just 0.096s to hold the leading position.
The session did include some initial spots of rain, but Brookes wasn’t fazed by the changing conditions and he was able to maintain his position ahead of the opposition for the Be Wiser Ducati team.
Josh Brookes
“Today was difficult in respect that I was already fast yesterday at the test, and even though session one was dry, it was really difficult to know how hard to push because there were some spots of rain.
“Even though I topped the session it wasn’t easy to gauge the conditions and it was a bit frustrating that we couldn’t use the session to its full potential because of that, so we made some setting changes on the bike but nothing was really conclusive.
“This afternoon’s session was much the same, obviously it was wet but we were cautious so we have to wait and see what happens tomorrow now.”
Josh Brookes
Buchan had made improvements on his last run in the session to move second as Tommy Bridewell also moved into third in the final five minutes to put the Oxford Racing Ducati team ahead of championship leader Scott Redding in fourth position.
Andrew Irwin had a strong start for the Honda Racing team in fifth place as he held off Peter Hickman who was sixth fastest despite sliding off at Hall Bends at the start of the session followed by another crash at Park at the mid-way point.
Ryan Vickers was back inside top ten for the RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki team in seventh place, narrowly ahead of Jason O’Halloran on the leading McAMS Yamaha. Glenn Irwin and Christian Iddon were equally matched in ninth and tenth for Tyco BMW, setting exactly the same fastest lap time.
Tarran Mackenzie was back on circuit completing three laps on his return from injury whilst Billy McConnell debuted for OMG Racing Suzuki in the Superbike class, replacing Luke Mossey for this weekend after he sustained a hairline fracture in his leg and watched the action from pitlane today.
Bridewell though topped the afternoon session at Cadwell Park in the wet to put the Oxford Racing Ducati team back ahead after a shortened session due to conditions.
Bridewell had set the benchmark earlier in the session before the conditions began to deteriorate in the closing stages, with Brookes, sitting second on the times on the Be Wiser Ducati.
Ryan Vickers was third fastest for the RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki team ahead of Claudio Corti and David Allingham who completed the top five.
Bradley Ray completed the most laps in the session in sixth place ahead of Dean Harrison and Peter Hickman with Joe Francis and Fraser Rogers completing the top ten.
Bennetts British Superbike Championship Cadwell Park, Free Practice one result
Josh Brookes (Be Wiser Ducati) 1m:27.221s
Danny Buchan (FS-3 Racing Kawasaki) +0.096s
Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Racing Ducati) +0.544s
Scott Redding (Be Wiser Ducati) +0.564s
Andrew Irwin (Honda Racing) +0.654s
Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) 0.664s
Ryan Vickers (RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki) +0.795s
Jason O’Halloran (McAMS Yamaha) +1.026s
Glenn Irwin (Tyco BMW) +1.220s
Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW) +1.220s
Bennetts British Superbike Championship Cadwell Park, Free Practice two result
Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Racing Ducati) 1m:40.223s
Josh Brookes (Be Wiser Ducati) +2.207s
Ryan Vickers (RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki) +3.508s
Claudio Corti (Team WD-40 Kawasaki) +5.410s
David Allingham (EHA Racing Yamaha) +5.866s
Bradley Ray (Buildbase Suzuki) +5.965s
Dean Harrison (Silicone Engineering Kawasaki) +6.345s
Josh Brookes leads BSB field on Thursday at Cadwell Park
Images by Dave Yeomans
Overnight Josh Brookes set the pace in the Bennetts British Superbike Championship official test ahead of tomorrow’s opening free practice session at Cadwell Park, firing the Be Wiser Ducati under the race lap record to top the times ahead of Danny Buchan by 0.716s.
Josh Brookes
Brookes’ 1m26.448 was enough to head the time-sheets ahead of this weekend’s eighth round of the British Superbike Championship, but is still half-a-second away from the fastest ever motorcycle lap of the Cadwell Park circuit which was set by Leon Haslam last year during qualifying at 1m25.932s.
Despite it being a circuit that he is truly spectacular to watch at, and one which has brought him some success, Josh doesn’t list the track amongst his favourites. We spoke to him before he went out on track at Thursday where he gave us his take on the circuit.
Josh Brookes
“Cadwell Park is most known for the jump, and I’ve become popular with the fans for jumping it but that causes people to assume I love the Cadwell Park Circuit. The truth is I don’t particularly like it that much.
Josh Brookes
“It’s a tricky circuit to get a set up for. The first half of the track is fast and flowing while the second half is all first and second gear, really tight and twisty. You can never get the bike to do both perfectly so that can be frustrating.
Josh Brookes
“The circuit is also very narrow so at Superbike speeds you feel like your riding on a balance beam.
Cadwell Park
“This weekend there is an added three-hour practice on Thursday evening so this will be valuable to get some extra track time and attempt to find that set up with the least compromise. Everyone will be out there doing the same thing, so no advantage, but still nice to get the set-up closer.
Josh Brookes
“I’m excited to see how the Ducati works here, it’s been very competitive bike at most rounds this year so far so hi expectations.”
He then went out and found the Ducati working pretty well there right out of the box.
Danny Buchan
Danny Buchan had been running inside the top five for the majority of the test, holding off the improving Scott Redding, who moved up the order as the test progressed on the second of the Be Wiser Ducatis.
Scott Redding
Christian Iddon was the leading Tyco BMW in fourth place, ahead of local hero Peter Hickman who completed the top five ahead of Tommy Bridewell and Andrew Irwin on the Honda Racing Fireblade.
Peter Hickman
Glenn Irwin was back inside the top ten on his second appearance on the Tyco BMW, holding off Xavi Forés and Luke Mossey who completed the top ten, but the OMG Racing Suzuki rider crashed in the final ten minutes sustaining an ankle injury. Josh Elliot also crashed at the end of the session at Park uninjured.
Jason O’Halloran
Jason O’Halloran ended the day 14th while countryman Ben Currie was 18th.
Cadwell Park Test Times
Josh BROOKES AUS Ducati – Be Wiser Ducati 1:26.448
Danny BUCHAN GBR Kawasaki – FS-3 Racing Kawasaki 1:27.164
Scott REDDING GBR Ducati – Be Wiser Ducati 1:27.502
Christian IDDON GBR BMW – Tyco BMW Motorrad 1:27.53889.65
Peter HICKMAN GBR BMW – Smiths Racing 1:27.555
Tommy BRIDEWELL GBR Ducati – Oxford Racing 1:27.608
Andrew IRWIN GBR Honda – Honda Racing 1:27.650
Glenn IRWIN GBR BMW – Tyco BMW Motorrad 1:27.685
Xavi FORÉS ESP Honda – Honda Racing 1:27.932
Luke MOSSEY GBR Suzuki – OMG Racing Suzuki 1:27.973
Dan LINFOOT GBR Yamaha – Santander Salt TAG Yamaha 1:27.979
Just five races stand between the Bennetts British Superbike Championship contenders and the 2019 Showdown as the series reaches Cadwell Park this weekend (August 16/17/18) for the annual BSB season highlight at the Lincolnshire circuit.
Scott Redding and Josh Brookes pictured at Thruxton
Scott Redding leads the way in the overall standings by just 20 points from his Be Wiser Ducati team-mate Josh Brookes after the Australian closed the point deficit last time out with victory at Thruxton.
Josh Brookes is always spectacular at Cadwell Park. Here he is pictured in 2014
However the 2015 champion shared the spoils with Honda Racing’s Andrew Irwin who, by becoming the sixth different winner of the season, claimed his first victory in Britain’s leading motorsport championship.
Josh Brookes topped the Race 2 podium from Irwin and Bridewell at Thruxton – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 7, Thruxton
Andrew Irwin’s victory catapulted him into sixth place in the overall standings and in doing so nudged his teammate Xavi Forés back into seventh, with the Louth-based team gearing up for their home round of the season at Cadwell Park.
Andrew Irwin – Honda Racing
“What a weekend at Thruxton! I don’t think it really all sank in straight away but now I can really appreciate what an achievement it was for myself and the whole Honda Racing team. The win was something I had wanted to achieve since I was younger – I used to watch riders like Jonathan Rea, Cal Crutchlow, Leon Haslam and Kiyo win races with Honda Racing and aspire to be able to achieve that one day. It was always a dream but now that is a reality and that is a big moment in any riders’ career. I am now just ahead of Xavi, and we are sixth and seventh in the championship standings ahead of Cadwell Park and we really are not that far off fourth place either. It would be a dream come true if we can get both Hondas into the Showdown and a reward for everyone who has worked so hard in the team. Cadwell Park is always a big round for our team; pretty much everyone who works in our garage live nearby, it is ten minutes from the workshop and so we will have a lot of support! Winning does make you more confident and it does give you that little bit extra, but at the same time Cadwell Park is a really difficult track. You have to be sensible and it is technical, physical and does sometimes require a bit of a compromise with the setting just because of the characteristics of the track. But I am feeling good, I know I have a great team behind me and we are looking forward to it.”
Andrew Irwin – Honda Racing
The current top six in the standings includes Oxford Racing Ducati’s Tommy Bridewell, one of 10 different podium finishers this season, who is gunning to claim the team’s first race win this weekend at a circuit where he has been victorious in the past.
Tommy Bridewell
However Danny Buchan will be eager to get his FS3-Racing Kawasaki back at the front this weekend. The Knockhill race winner still holds fourth place in the standings as both he and the team bid to claim their place in the Showdown for the first time, but he only carries a marginal six-point advantage over Tarran Mackenzie.
Danny Buchan leading the pack at Thruxton
Mackenzie meanwhile is targeting a comeback from injury this weekend after a qualifying crash at Thruxton; the McAMS Yamaha rider holds a slender five-point lead over Andrew Irwin following his non points-scoring performance last time out.
Tarran Mackenzie
However there is a mounting range of outcomes ahead of the Showdown getting underway at Assen as Forés trails his teammate by just seven points with local ace Peter Hickman also edging closer following his first podium finish of the season at Thruxton and his recent clean sweep of the major classes at the Ulster Grand Prix.
Peter Hickman
There are still a maximum of 125 points up for grabs in the two races on Sunday at Cadwell Park followed by the triple-header Showdown decider at Oulton Park, so that means that riders including Christian Iddon and Jason O’Halloran could still spoil the party for their rivals.
2019 British Superbike Championship Round Seven – Thruxton
Images by Dave Yeomans
Thruxton saw an exciting weekend of racing conclude on Sunday, with Andrew Irwin claiming the opening Bennetts British Superbike race win of the weekend – his first win in the series – ahead of Scott Redding and Josh Brookes.
In Race 2 however, it was Josh Brookes who maintained his momentum at the high-speed Hampshire circuit to claim the victory for Be Wiser Ducati, regulating Irwin to second-place, while Peter Hickman completed the podium, with Aussie Jason O’Halloran just tenths of a second behind in fourth.
Josh Brookes – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
This marked O’Halloran’s second fourth place of the weekend in a solid result. Fellow Aussie Ben Currie was a DNF in Race 1, and came home in 20th in Race 2.
Taylor Mackenzie claimed the Superstock 1000 race win from Lee Jackson and Billy McConnell, with Richard Cooper launching into the lead from the start but finishing in fourth.
Kyle Ryde – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
The Supersport class meanwhile saw Kyle Ryde take a narrow win in the second race of the weekend from Jack Kennedy with a tenth of a second between them, with Mason Law a distant third.
Bennetts British Superbike Race 1
At the start of Race 1 Peter Hickman launched off the front row to hit the front of the pack ahead of Andrew Irwin and Jason O’Halloran, but the Honda Racing rider hit the front of the field at the end of the opening lap.
Peter Hickman – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
His rival instantly hit back to retake the position on the next lap, but Andrew Irwin was back on the attack and he was back in the lead as the pack streamed across the line to start the third lap. O’Halloran though was in fourth place, but he put a move on Christian Iddon and then as the freight train of riders headed into Club on lap four, the Australian had been able to claim the lead for McAMS Yamaha.
As O’Halloran led, the pack had shuffled again and Iddon was then into second place ahead of Andrew Irwin, Hickman, Tommy Bridewell, Scott Redding, Danny Buchan and Josh Brookes on lap six.
A lap later and Andrew Irwin and Hickman were inseparable, but Redding was also on the move and he was into fifth on the leading Be Wiser Ducati. Meanwhile O’Halloran was holding off the chasing pack, but the lead group of nine riders were all in contention.
Jason O’Halloran – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
On lap ten Hickman moved back into the lead with Iddon then following him through on the brakes as the BMWs held first and second ahead of O’Halloran and Andrew Irwin. O’Halloran was ready to fight back, he made a move at Club a lap later and was back into second place.
The Smiths Racing BMW rider was trying to make a break from the pack, but his rivals could match his pace, while Iddon was dropping back and the Be Wiser Ducati pairing of Redding and Brookes were into fourth and fifth respectively with six laps remaining.
On lap 14 Andrew Irwin then went for a move to take the lead, pushing Hickman pack into second and into the clutches of Redding, O’Halloran and Brookes. Championship leader Redding made his move, lunging ahead of Hickman to move second with O’Halloran still pushing for his first podium of the season.
Andrew Irwin – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
O’Halloran was back into second a lap later before hitting the front of the field on lap 16 as the final strategies were coming into play over the final five laps of the race. The McAMS Yamaha rider was then holding off the pack that had again changed with Andrew Irwin back in second ahead of Brookes and Redding.
With two laps remaining Andrew Irwin had scythed his way back to the front of the pack with O’Halloran then back in second with Brookes and Redding fighting for third, however the 2015 champion was hungry for a top three finish and he was up to second, but on the final lap Redding was ahead of his teammate again.
On the final run into Club Redding looked to try and make a move on Andrew Irwin for the lead as equally Brookes was looking to move ahead of his teammate, however the Honda rider had the edge to cross the line ahead of the Be Wiser Ducati pairing.
Andrew Irwin topped the Race 1 podium from Scott Redding and Josh Brookes – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
O’Halloran just missed out on his first podium finish of the season ahead of Hickman and Buchan, who had worked his way through the pack into sixth. Xavi Forés had another strong performance to hold on to sixth place in the standings ahead of Tommy Bridewell and Luke Mossey. Ryan Vickers was back inside the top ten in his rookie season for the RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki team.
Bennetts British Superbike Race 2
The second race had started with a battle for the lead between O’Halloran and Brookes with Hickman and race one winner Andrew Irwin in the mix, but on lap nine the race was red flagged as light rain began to fall.
Jason O’Halloran – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
When the race restarted, Hickman had the jump off the line to lead on the opening lap from Brookes, Andrew Irwin and Bridewell. On the second lap Brookes was coming under fire from a determined Honda Racing rider, but Dan Linfoot was also on the move and he was up into third ahead of Hickman.
However a crash for Glenn Irwin at the Club chicane caused another red flag when the stricken Tyco BMW was in the middle of the track and leaking fluid. The Racesafe marshals worked to clear the scene before the race was restarted again with an eight-lap sprint to the chequered flag.
On the final restart Brookes wasn’t taking any prisoners and he fired himself into the lead and then went to make a break, eventually crossing the line 4.276s ahead of the chasing pack to claim his fifth victory of the season for Be Wiser Ducati.
Josh Brookes – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
The battle for second ensued behind with Andrew Irwin and Hickman banging fairings in their quest to break into the top six in the standings. The pair were trading blows with Bridewell, Hickman, Iddon, O’Halloran and Redding also all in the mix.
However, a mistake on lap three saw Redding run on at Club and having not completed the re-join into the race correctly, he was issued a long lap penalty. The Be Wiser Ducati rider had three laps to complete the long lap as the race laps counted down, however he failed to do so, and despite crossing the line in a podium position, he was given the ride through equivalent penalty of 15 seconds. That dropped him down to 22nd and outside of the points.
Andrew Irwin – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
Andrew Irwin meanwhile had his strongest weekend of his career claiming a second place in race two, ahead of Hickman who was third to take the first podium finish for the new BMW S1000 RR.
O’Halloran had completed his best performance of the season to finish in fourth place for McAMS Yamaha, holding off Bridewell in the closing stages.
Josh Brookes topped the Race 2 podium from Irwin and Bridewell – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
Iddon equalled his best race result of the season in sixth place ahead of Xavi Forés, who just dropped outside of the top six in the points ahead of Cadwell Park. Buchan maintained his position inside the top six with an eighth place ahead of Luke Mossey and Linfoot who completed the top ten.
Andrew Irwin – 1-2
“Thruxton has probably been the best weekend of my life, it’s one that you never think will happen! I’ve had so much fun riding this weekend. We did loads of homework on Friday and Saturday and the Fireblade has been so good in all sessions, the boys did an awesome job! It is such an amazing feeling to win! I think I passed Jason going into the last lap or something like that and I felt like I had some tyre left. The pace was funny it went up and down a lot with whoever went to the lead. I just wanted to put a strong lap together on the last lap. It is a dream come true, it’s been a tough road to get here, the best road and I’ve learnt a lot along the way. Whenever I won a Supersport race, I only won one but my team-mate helped me along the way so this feels like my first proper win that I’ve ever got so I’m delighted and I can’t thank Honda enough for all their hard work.”
Andrew Irwin – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
Josh Brookes – 3-1
“Tyre conservation is on your mind all weekend here at Thruxton so with the second race going from 20 laps to 13 laps and then down to eight laps, I could ride exactly how I wanted to and just went full speed as the tyre was always going to last eight laps.I just got my head down and went for it and whilst it may not have been as close as the first race, I enjoyed it a lot more. The field is so level now, every race is tough but Pirelli have done a great job with the tyres and they’re a little bit easier to manage around here now and although I still wanted more from myself, I was happy with the first race podium.I got pushed around a bit too much on track and needed to find a little bit more confidence, so the second race win has given me exactly what I needed and it’s great to be back on the top step.”
Josh Brookes – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
Jason O’Halloran – 4-4
“It was good to get some solid finishes. I am a little bit disappointed not to be on the podium as I felt we had really good pace in both races. We’ll take fourth today, the boys have done a good job. I’ve said it the last couple of rounds, if we get a full weekend without any issues in practice and qualifying and we’ll be back up the sharp end and that’s what we’ve done this weekend. Everybody has done a great job and it feels nice to have some momentum and build through the first two days of the weekend. I had a crash at Snetterton and to be honest I’ve had a bit of an issue with my left shoulder, so I have to thank my physio and the physio team at the track. We’ve got a couple of weeks off before Cadwell, so I’ll try and get a bit fitter and see if we can carry this momentum to Cadwell.”
Jason O’Halloran – 2019 British Superbike Championship Round 10, Thruxton
Xavi Forés – 7-7
“To be honest I feel frustrated this weekend, I had good pace to be on the podium, but starting towards the back of the grid was hard to manage. The first few laps here are crazy and I had to adapt quite a bit to be strong in the first part of the race. The second race I did the third fastest lap, which means I am always improving lap-by-lap. Coming home with two seventh place finishes is good for me, especially at this kind of track where I have not ridden before and it’s not easy for me to defend my position. I feel if we can improve our qualification for the next races we will be so much more competitive. Good job from all the team, we had a great weekend and especially with Andrew’s win and podium, I feel we now have a really good package with the Fireblade.”
2019 British Superbike Championship Round Seven – Thruxton – Saturday
Scott Redding claimed his third pole position of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship season with a last lap dash in the final two minutes of the final Datatag Qualifying session as he snatched the top spot from Tommy Bridewell at Thruxton.
The final stage of Qualifying was extended to 12 minutes when light rain began to fall, but with it stopping and starting during the crucial final stage, the battle for pole went down to the wire with the fastest rider changing eight times before the chequered flag.
Initially Christian Iddon had tried to set an early lap time and he went to the top of the timing screens for Tyco BMW ahead of Bridewell, but a few minutes later Andrew Irwin had surged to the top, however just 60 seconds later his brother Glenn claimed the leading position.
Redding had been tentative initially when the session got underway but then with six minutes on the clock he fired the Be Wiser Ducati to the top of the times, but he didn’t maintain it to the finish as Bridewell then posted his fastest lap of the session to put the Oxford Racing Ducati ahead of the opposition.
However Redding was ready to go for another time attack in the fight for pole position and he launched ahead with less than two minutes on the clock to bag the top time in Datatag Qualifying ahead of Bridewell.
Scott Redding – P1
“I am so happy to be on pole here. These guys [Bridewell and Hickman] sound like they had a strategy going on in that session listening to what they just said! I haven’t got time for strategies this weekend, with zero laps around here before I just need to try and learn everything I can at every moment. I’m making mistakes, but I’m pushing on the limit. Then it started raining and basically the guys in the team said to me this track is super grippy in the rain so you should be alright, so I took that on the shoulder and I took the chance. I saw some of the boys putting hands up and I saw Tommy going out on his used tyre; seeing all these things I just thought to myself I’m going to do my own thing. I was going to go in the pits but then I saw Irwin go in, but I decided to just go and take a chance. I stuck it into Church, it was raining a bit, and I had both wheels sliding but I just thought to myself “hold it for one more lap. To come away with the pole was something I didn’t real expect today, but for sure something that I wanted. I have been working on race distance as I hear a lot of talk about saving the tyres and I was in a rhythm and I think that helped. I am happy and now I am looking forward to some good races tomorrow!”
Peter Hickman had been moving back up the order in the closing stages after a positive start and he was able to seal his second front row qualifying performance of the season.
Peter Hickman
Josh Brookes will head the second row; the Be Wiser Ducati rider decided to hold out in the opening stages of the session but he was able to move into fourth, pushing the racing brothers Andrew and Glenn into fifth and sixth respectively.
Ryan Vickers had his strongest qualifying performance of his rookie season in seventh place ahead of Jason O’Halloran and Iddon who completed the riders in Q3 for Tyco BMW.
Tommy Bridewell
However it was disappointment for Tarran Mackenzie who crashed out in the opening stage of Datatag Qualifying, sustaining a left wrist fracture, the same injury sustained by Joe Francis, which both riders now unfit ahead of tomorrow’s two races.
Thruxton BSB Qualifying Results
Scott Redding (Be Wiser Ducati) 1m:14.803s
Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Racing Ducati) +0.059s
Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) +0.502s
Josh Brookes (Be Wiser Ducati) +0.668s
Andrew Irwin (Honda Racing) +0.733s
Glenn Irwin (Tyco BMW) +0.774s
Ryan Vickers (RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki) +0.940s
Jason O’Halloran (McAMS Yamaha) +1.101s
Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW) +1.139s
Supersport
Kyle Ryde took the first Dickies British Supersport GP2 win on track at Thruxton, slipping past Supersport class winner Jack Kennedy at the final corner. Launching off the line was the Integro Yamaha of Brad Jones but by the time they crossed the line for the first time series leader Kennedy had found a way through as had Ryde.
Remaining in a tense game of follow the leader for much of the race, title challenger Alastair Seeley had moved up to fourth by lap six before the Safety Car was deployed just one lap later. Pitting back in at the start of the tenth lap, it was a three lap battle for the win.
Coming down to the final corner on the final lap, Ryde was able to slice his way through Kennedy to take the victory on track and secure the GP2 machine. Kennedy finished top Supersport machine whilst Jones was able to hold off a late challenge from Seeley to take second.
2019 British Superbike Championship Round Seven – Thruxton – Friday
Peter Hickman topped the times after the opening Bennetts British Superbike Championship free practice sessions at Thruxton today, launching the Smiths Racing BMW to the fastest time in the Hampshire heat as he bids for a place in the Showdown.
Hickman had topped the opening session and with the times improving in the afternoon, the Smiths Racing BMW rider stayed at the top with an edge of just 0.273s from FS-3 Racing Kawasaki’s Danny Buchan who surged up the order in the closing stages.
Peter Hickman – P1
“We have had our usual day one really but it has been a good one! I felt really strong and happy with how it has gone today. We took an educated guess with the setup and we went straight out and did a 20-lap race run and the lap times were pretty good even at the end. The first session here is usually harder on tyres here as the track starts the weekend a bit green, but it didn’t seem to be like that today. We are in a good position at the moment but we have some tweaks we know we now need to make for tomorrow because qualifying is crucial and we really paid for that when I crashed at Snetterton at the last round. We have learnt a lot today and we finish the day happy and ready to try and make some more improvements tomorrow.”
Peter Hickman – Image by Dave Yeomans
Multiple Thruxton race winner Josh Brookes moved up into third to lead the Be Wiser Ducati charge, narrowly ahead of Jason O’Halloran on the McAMS Yamaha as four different manufacturers featured in the leading positions.
Championship leader Scott Redding was fifth fastest on his first visit to Thruxton with Glenn Irwin clocking a time to end the opening day in sixth place on his debut with Tyco BMW, and narrowly ahead of his brother Andrew.
Rookie Ryan Vickers climbed inside the top ten in the afternoon session; the RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki rider edged out Ben Currie on the leading Quattro Plant JG Speedfit Kawasaki. His team-mate Hector Barbera had a crash in the second session; the Spanish rider sustained a fracture to his right fibula and is having physio. He will be reviewed for fitness tomorrow before free practice three.
The Bennetts British Superbike Championship hits Thruxton this weekend (August 2/3/4) for the seventh round of the season, and the high-speed Hampshire circuit will prove crucial to the title chase with just seven races now remaining before the Showdown.
Thruxton is renowned for producing some incredible last-lap passes and daring slip-stream manoeuvres, and with a potential 175 points still available before the Showdown Title Fighters are decided at Oulton Park, every point counts.
Josh Brookes did British Superbike Double at Thruxton in 2014
Josh Brookes has previously been the man to beat at Thruxton; he has won races on eight occasions and finished a further four times on the podium, the Aussie will be hoping history can repeat itself this weekend on the second Be Wiser Ducati.
BSB 2015 – Thruxton – Josh Brookes
Josh Brookes
“I’m happy with the year so far, there have been a few low points but majority of that has been due to factors out of my control. I’m readying myself for this weekends round 7 at Thruxton. This has been a great circuit for me, here I got my very first BSB podium and then also my first BSB win.
BSB 2017 – Round Seven – Thruxton Josh Brookes (Anvil Hire TAG Yamaha) Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) +1.026s Jake Dixon (RAF Reserves Kawasaki) +1.774s
“Either I like the track so I get good results or the good results makes me like the track. Either way I hope the trend continues this weekend and I can get some extra points over everyone as we start the second half of the season. It’s not by choice but history says I get stronger as the season goes on so if that pattern runs true this year I’m in a very good position to potential take my second BSB championship.”
This season Brookes has joined Be Wiser Ducati
Broookes’s Be Wiser Ducati team-mate Scott Redding arrives at Thruxton leading the championship standings after a double win at Snetterton. But having never visited the circuit before, the seasoned MotoGP regular admits that he is going to have to plan a different strategy this weekend.
Scott Redding
“From what I have heard from other riders its fast, it’s quite open and the approach to the race will be different as I hear many of the guys have said it is a lot about tyre wear and I think with the high temperatures that will add to it. But it is something I am looking forward to as it is a different challenge and a different approach I will need to take. I am definitely looking forward to it; it is a bit more local to me so I am looking to put on a good race for the crowds there and see if we can try and bag some more podiums. This race like I say is going to be very different it is not going to be about who is the fastest, it is going to maybe be about who is the smartest rider and controlled rider for the tyre wear so I will be keeping that in mind of course. I have never been to the track at all, I have done zero laps there before in my life so I don’t know what to expect!
Scott Redding – Snetterton BSB 2019
Ready to take the Ducati duo on in the battle for victories this weekend are the hometown force of Devizies-born Tommy Bridewell and the Winchester-based Oxford Racing Ducati team. They arrive second in the overall standings after claiming eight consistent podium finishes, but the team has yet to claim a race win in the Superbike class, something that Bridewell is fully focused on achieving this weekend.
Tommy Bridewell at Brands Hatch – 2019
Following a podium finish and a crash last time out at Snetterton, Tarran Mackenzie holds fourth in the championship standings, with the McAMS Yamaha team also having previously won at Thruxton. Mackenzie, one of the five different winners this season, is bidding to try to consolidate his position in the Showdown for the first time.
Tarran Mackenzie
Knockhill race winner Danny Buchan holds fifth place for FS3-Racing Kawasaki as they try to make the cut for the Showdown for the first time; with an 18-point advantage over Xavi Forés, the Essex contender knows that he needs to be back fighting at the sharp end this weekend to maintain his marginal advantage.
Danny Buchan
Like Redding, Forés has never lapped Thruxton before and the Honda Racing rider holds the final place in the top six ahead of the two races on Sunday. The Spanish ace also has an 18-point advantage over Peter Hickman in seventh, but knows he needs to deliver two strong results this weekend if he is going to hold that all-important position in the standings.
Xavi Forés
Hickman is the first in the list trying to bump someone out of the top six; after a double podium at the circuit last year, the Smiths Racing BMW rider is eager to claw back the deficit this weekend. But he needs to also keep Andrew Irwin and Christian Iddon behind him.
Peter Hickman’s BMW S 1000 RR
Andrew Irwin had the strongest weekend of his Superbike career last time out at Snetterton, which has moved him to within 20 points of sixth place with Iddon on the Tyco BMW just two points adrift of the Honda Racing rider as they target a Showdown position for the first time.
Andrew Irwin and Jason O’Halloran
Glenn Irwin returns to action this weekend after parting company with Quattro Plant – JG Speedfit Kawasaki, he lines up in Tyco BMW colours for the remainder of the season as Keith Farmer remains sidelined through injury. Meanwhile for the Bournemouth-based Quattro Plant – JG Speedfit Kawasaki team, Hector Barbera returns alongside Ben Currie to make his Thruxton debut.
