Whatever happens, it has been a phenomenal year for me says British Superbike title contender Glenn Irwin

The Carrickfergus man returned with a vengeance this season after joining the Honda Racing team alongside his brother Andrew following a blow-par year by his standards in 2019.

Irwin is third in the standings, 18 points behind VisionTrack Ducati’s Josh Brookes, who leads team-mate Christian Iddon by 16 points with a total of 75 up for grabs during the triple-header weekend at the Kent circuit.

McAMS Yamaha rider Jason O’Halloran is also right in contention in a thrilling four-way title battle, with the Australian only one point behind Irwin in fourth.

A crash in the tricky conditions in race one at Donington at the penultimate round was a missed opportunity for Irwin, but the 30-year-old regrouped to clinch a confidence-boosting runner-up finish ahead of title leader Brookes in the final race at the Grand Prix circuit.

Now, his primary objective is to finish ahead of rival Brookes in all three races, although Irwin admits achieving his aim will be a major challenge.

“There are three riders involved and also Taz Mackenzie mathematically, but I think if I can come out on top of Josh in all three races then that would probably put me ahead of the other two lads as well [Christian Iddon and Jason O’Halloran],” Irwin told the News Letter.

“I don’t believe that 18 points is a huge task whatsoever – the huge task is being able to beat Josh in every race at Brands Hatch. I think he has won seven of the last 10 races there, including all five last year, so for sure it will be a huge ask.

“In saying that, of course I’d have bitten your hand off to be in this position if you’d asked me at the beginning of the year and what will be, will be,” Irwin added.

“In myself I’m feeling really good and I’m in a good moment with my racing and also in my life. I have learnt a lot and I’m continuing to apply what I’ve learned, so there is no reason why I can’t go and perform this weekend and be strong.”

The Ulster rider, who sealed his first win of the season at Snetterton in August, says whatever transpires at the season finale this weekend, he will be able to reflect on a ‘phenomenal’ year.

“Yes, I’ll be disappointed if I don’t win it, but all in all it will have been a phenomenal year for me whatever happens now because I think I have re-established myself as a better version of where I was when I was at my previous best,” he said.

“I think that is down to all the hard work I’ve done and I admitted I have struggled mentally and that’s probably the best thing I’ve done. I continue to work hard on myself and that has really paid off for me in racing, so that is why this year has been a really successful year for me.

“My family life is back on track, my racing is going good and I’m happy on a day-to-day basis, so it’s been a huge success,” added Irwin.

“The British Superbike Championship would be the icing on the cake, but I can only control what I can do.

“I’ve got to go and have the best weekend I’ve had and the last race at Donington sets up us with more confidence. I don’t want to look at the other races at Donington because I don’t want to be wondering ‘what if’ after race three at Brands. We can’t change that so we’ll just go and get stuck in.”

The first free practice session at the Brands GP circuit is scheduled for 3.15pm today.

Race one on Saturday is at 4.15pm with Sunday’s two BSB races at 12.45pm and 4pm respectively.

Free practice also gets underway on Friday at Estoril in Portugal, where Jonathan Rea is set to be crowned World Superbike champion for a sixth time.

The Kawasaki rider can achieve the feat in race one tomorrow (14:00 BST).

* A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to newsletter.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to the best Northern Irish and UK news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than five articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. To subscribe, click here.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Thank you,

Alistair Bushe

Editor