Glenn Irwin aiming to wrest back British Superbike title lead from Tommy Bridewell at Snetterton
Glenn Irwin is targeting a return to winning ways this weekend at Snetterton as he attempts to reclaim the lead of the British Superbike Championship.
The Hager PBM Ducati rider endured a testing time at Knockhill last month after failing to score any points in the opening race when he was black-flagged after smoke was spotted coming from the rear of his machine.
Irwin received a penalty for continuing to proceed for several laps before eventually pulling out and had to start from the back of the grid in the second race.
The 33-year-old relinquished his title lead to old rival and former PBM Ducati team-mate Tommy Bridewell, who clinched his first victory as a Honda rider at Knockhill.
Bridewell leads the standings by eight points ahead of Saturday’s first race at the Norfolk circuit (16:00 BST) and was a hat-trick winner in 2023 when he rode the Ducati.
The reigning champion topped the free practice time sheets on Friday with Irwin only 0.052s behind.
“When you’ve had a difficult round, it’s always good to turn up at the next track fully motivated and keen to put things right,” said Irwin.
“The conditions at Knockhill were some of the toughest I’ve ever raced in but I felt good and it was disappointing that the results didn’t quite go our way.
“But we are taking the positives out of that weekend and the plan is to start winning races again this weekend at Snetterton.
“We have gained a lot of information over the first few rounds and we are always working on areas where we can improve.
“There are a lot of things different from last year but we know what we need to do and there is a great mindset and belief in the team.”
Bridewell tested at Snetterton prior to this weekend’s fifth round of the series and admits there is an expectation that he will perform well following his clean sweep last July.
“Going to somewhere that you have performed at previously is a hard one sometimes because you go back and you expect to do well again,” Bridewell said.
“That creates a bit of pressure, and there is an element of pressure now we are leading the championship anyway, but I thrive on that.
“I won’t be doing anything different now that I’m leading, it’s just the same as always.”
Andrew Irwin – who finished on the podium alongside Honda Racing team-mate Bridewell at Knockhill – was 12th fastest on Friday.