British Superbike title contender Glenn Irwin was third fastest overall in free practice on Friday at the final round of the championship at Brands Hatch.

Irwin, 14th in a wet FP1 after missing half of the session, climbed the leaderboard in dry conditions later in the afternoon.

The Carrick man, who is second in the title standings, 7.5 points behind his BeerMonster Ducati team-mate Tommy Bridewell, was 0.466s down on pacesetter Kyle Ryde on the OMG Yamaha.

Ryde is third in the championship, 27.5 points adrift of Bridewell, who was fifth fastest on the combined times behind Christian Iddon (Oxford Products Ducati).

placeholder image — BeerMonster Ducati rider Glenn Irwin was third fastest in practice at Brands Hatch on Friday. Picture: David Yeomans Photography

Peter Hickman was a surprise package in FP2 as the FHO Racing BMW rider finished second on the time sheets, three tenths down on Ryde.

McAMS Yamaha’s Jason O’Halloran rounded out the top six.

Jack Kennedy was 10th on the Mar-Train Racing Yamaha with Andrew Irwin (Honda Racing UK) in 21st as he competes in his second meeting since returning from injury at Donington Park following a crash in testing at the end of May.

Qualifying on Saturday is from 12:30 BST with the 12-lap Sprint race due at 16:15 BST.

Sunday’s two BSB races are at 12:45 BST and 16:00 BST.