Two-horse race for British Superbike Championship?
The month of August saw Tommy Bridewell edge a step closer to successfully defending his British Superbike Championship title but with the season now entering its Showdown phase, with more points on offer at the next two rounds at Oulton Park and Donington Park and again at the season finale at Brands Hatch, his lead is only a slender 19 points over Kyle Ryde.
Bridewell and Ryde favourites
With 13 and 11 podiums respectively, Bridewell and Ryde have been the most consistent riders in the first eight rounds and although other riders have won more races, Ryan Vickers and Glenn Irwin specifically, it now looks to be a two-horse race for the 2024 title.
Bridewell continues to shine in his maiden campaign on the Honda and although he’s only taken two race wins, he’s been a regular front runner. The now 36-year old has never been a serial winner, except for last year, but his pace at all circuits and in all conditions is again playing a huge part in his title challenge.
Tommy Bridewell Image Credit Double Red Photography
He’s also adept at working his way through the field from lowly grid positions and the Honda Racing rider excels at the following three circuits – Oulton, Donington and Brands – so he’s going to take some shifting from the top spot.
His main threat is undoubtedly Ryde. Consistency has been his undoing in previous campaigns, but he looks to have corrected that issue this time around and, indeed, hasn’t been out of the top six in the last 12 races. He was in superb form at Cadwell, not one of his favourite circuits, so to come away from there with two wins and a second shows how he’s improved.
Kyle Ryde Image Credit OMG GRILLA Yamaha Racing
Like Bridewell, Ryde excels at Donington and Brands so if the OMG GRILLA Yamaha can do similar at Oulton – Bridewell outscored him by 13 points there earlier in the year – we’ll be in for a close and thrilling finale.
Thruxton costs Irwin again
After a disappointing Brands Hatch, where he suffered a heavy crash in the second race, Irwin lost ground in the title race but that paled into comparison to what happened at Thruxton in early August. The high-speed, bumpy and abrasive Hampshire venue had been his, and Ducati’s Achilles heel in 2023 and so it was again this year.
Last year saw him score just 13 points and this year was even worse with just three registered. His cause wasn’t aided by a massive high-side in the second race and although he re-grouped slightly at Cadwell with a hat-trick of fifth place finishes, he fell some way short of repeating the double victory he took at the same circuit twelve months ago.
Glenn Irwin Image Credit Double Red Photography
The new-for-2024 Pirelli tyre has proven to be Irwin’s and the Ducati’s problem area this season as although he’s scored six wins, he’s failed to add another podium to his tally. Whilst the Ducati works well on the harder tyre on grippy surfaces, it doesn’t elsewhere.
But Irwin’s determination and never-say-die attitude remain two of his key attributes and whilst the 60-point deficit to Bridewell makes it a tall order, the remaining three rounds take place at three of his favourite, and most successful, circuits. But ultimately, he needs both Bridewell and Ryde to suffer some DNF’s.
Vickers undoes good work
The meetings at Brands Hatch and Thruxton saw Ryde’s team-mate Vickers in sublime form. Five wins and a second saw him haul himself back into title contention, no mean feat given he failed to register a single point in the six races at Donington Park and Knockhill, a broken collarbone at the former seeing him suffer a significant setback.
A double victory at the opening round at Navarra showed Vickers’ undoubted pace but he fell away and looked to be out of the title race. But the run of success at Brands and Thruxton saw him close to within 50 points of Bridewell. And when he dominated the pre-event test at Cadwell along with the free practice sessions, that gap looked like it would reduce substantially in the three races. Until qualifying took place when his weekend began to unravel.
Ryan Vickers Image Credit OMG GRILLA Yamaha Racing
An unforced error saw him crash out on his out lap in qualifying session and with no time registered, he was back on the sixth row. And with overtaking notoriously difficult around the tight and twisty parkland circuit, he was immediately on the back foot. Indeed, it was a mistake he never recovered from.
A mechanical issue forced him out of the first race and although he took a fine sixth in the second race, another mistake came in the final race when he crashed out of the lead early on. Vickers’ pace is without question, but he still makes too many mistakes and now 86 points behind Bridewell, hopes of the 2024 BSB title have now disappeared.
Iddon and Kent fall away
Both Christian Iddon and Danny Kent have enjoyed strong seasons so far, taking eight and six podiums respectively, but both suffered in August. Iddon only managed a best finish of sixth in the six races and although Kent was on the podium twice at Thruxton, he had a weekend to forget at Cadwell.
Christian Iddon Image Credit Ducati Racing
That, perhaps, wasn’t too much of a surprise as the former Moto3 World Champion missed last year’s meeting and has only ever competed on a Superbike at the venue once. Cadwell’s a tough circuit and riders who excel are those who’ve been riding a Superbike there for years whilst a row five grid position for the opening race meant it was never going to be easy.
Danny Kent Image Credit McAMS Racing Yamaha
He only picked up three points from the weekend whilst Iddon, more surprisingly, only managed a best finish of eighth. Like Irwin, he’d struggled with his Ducati at Thruxton and in the last two rounds he’s conceded almost 40 points to Bridewell in the championship standings. Now 63 points adrift, the title isn’t gone yet but, like Irwin, he’s going to need misfortune to come the way of Bridewell and Ryde.
Hawk roll back the years
Whilst some riders and teams found the going tough at Cadwell, it was the opposite for Hawk Racing with Lee Jackson finishing on the podium in all three races and team-mate Charlie Nesbitt taking a third and two fourths. Second and third in the opening race was the first time since Mondello Park in 2004 that the Leicestershire-based team have had both riders on the podium.
Long time Kawasaki rider Jackson hasn’t found the switch to Honda an easy one although his renowned consistency has remained, finishing in the points in all but one of the races to take place so far. However, the first part of the season saw most of those in the eighth to 15th area. He’s been gradually getting quicker though and that was clearly demonstrated at Cadwell.
Cadwell action Image Credit Double Red Photography
True, it’s his local circuit and he’s a former lap record holder around Cadwell but he’d showed good form at both Brands and Thruxton, so it looks like he’s finally got to grips with the Honda. Nesbitt, meanwhile, showed great promise last year in his maiden BSB campaign but perhaps hasn’t kicked on as he’d have liked.
Like Jackson, scoring points hasn’t been a problem but he’s been up and down somewhat this season. He’s been a regular in the top ten but mainly towards the bottom end but with fifth at Thruxton and the strong showing at Cadwell, he’ll be hoping to end the season strongly.
Injury derails O’Halloran’s challenge
Perennial title challenger Jason O’Halloran made the switch to Kawasaki this year after five years at the front with Yamaha but 2024 hasn’t followed the pattern he would have been hoping far. Aside from victory at Donington Park, he’s only finished on the podium once and a recent crash at Thruxton has ended his challenge this season.
Third in the opening race at the Hampshire circuit was just his second podium of the year but he looked ultra-competitive and would have expected more of the same the following day. Instead, a mechanical issue in morning warm-up caused him to crash heavily and a hand injury ruled him out for the rest of the weekend.
Jason O’Halloran Image Credit Impact Images Photography
He bravely raced at Cadwell, a physical track at the best of times never mind when you’re carrying an injury, and although his one-lap pace was extremely strong, sustaining it for the full race distance was near impossible.
Sixth in the opening race was a fine effort but he faded from there on in and after slipping back to tenth in the second, he wisely parked the bike for the final race, opting to rest his hand instead. Now ninth in the championship standings, another year without the BSB title has passed him by.
Having started watching motorcycle races all over the world form childhood, Phil Wain has been a freelance motorcycle journalist for almost 20 years and is features writer for a number of publications including BikeSport News, Classic Racer and Road Racing Ireland, as well as being a regular contributor to MCN and MCN Sport.
He is PR officer for a number of teams and riders at both the British Superbike Championship and International road races, including PBM Ducati, John McGuinness, KTS Racing and Jackson Racing. He is also heavily involved with the Isle of Man TT Races working with the race organisation, writing official press releases and race reports as well as providing the TV and radio broadcasting teams with statistical information.
