BSB were at Oulton Park last weekend for the opening round of the British Superbike Showdown. Needless to say it was total bedlam.
Race 1 Results
As is always the case, the opening laps were a complete frenzy. O'Halloran got the holeshot, and he battled with Tommy Bridewell before Brad Ray showed up to spoil the party and take the lead. Peter Hickman and Leon Haslam got fantastic starts with 4th and 5th positions after the dust settled with Danny Buchan just behind them in 6th place. Skinner, Jackson, Mackenzie, Ryde, and G Irwin all had poor starts, as they all found themselves mired in the midpack melee for Race 1. By lap 5, a breakaway quartet formed, as Hickman gapped Haslam and Buchan, though it was clear that Ray was settling into a groove and easing away from the lead group. By 2/3rd distance, Ray had opened a second gap, while Bridwell, O'Halloran and Hickman remained in formation behind him. Mackenzie had decided that 10th position was not befitting a reigning champion so he turned up the wick, got around A Irwin and started pulling the midpack marauders towards Haslam and Buchan. Tarran would eventually work his way into 5th position, with clear track in front of him. He put his head down, but failed to pull himself up to Hickman, and eventually Mackenzie's valiant charge would end in tears as he crashed on Lap 12. Somehow, Mackenzie's demise inspired Haslam who took up the charge to reach Hickman, O'Halloran and Bridewell. Leon pulled himself within about a half second, just in time to get a front row seat for the mugging (imo) that Hickman put on O'Halloran, causing Jason to have a high speed crash. In the end, Ray finished first with Bridewell 2nd, and Haslam pipped Hickman after Pete ran wide after contact with O'Halloran. G Irwin finished fifth, after following Mackenzie through the midpack. O'Halloran was seething with frustration and rage after the incident after crashing so close to the finish. Drama.
Race 2 Results
If the Race 1 start was chaos, the Race 2 start was mania. Jason O'Halloran took off Brad Ray's nose to get the holeshot. Ray repaid the favor a few turns later to take the lead, and smartly decided to put his head down. Bridewell was in third with Skinner, Mackenzie and Haslam in tow. Then all hell broke loose when Bridewell decided to punt O'Halloran at Druids, same place Hickman had mugged Jason in Race 1. The stewards took an immediate interest in Bridewell's move, which was even later than Hickman's move the race prior. The stewards awarded Tommy with a ride-through. The moment the penalty appeared on screen, Mackenzie went down and was hit (at low speed thankfully) by Peter Hickman. This incident brought out the red flag so the corner workers and medics could tend to Mackenzie and clean up the bike parts strewn around the circuit. The restart was clean with Ray taking the holeshot. Skinner was 2nd with Ryde 3rd, Jackson 4th, and Iddon 5th. Completely different complexion than the opening stint, but if you though the mayhem was over, you'd be wrong. On Lap 4, it started to rain, and a major pileup at the chicane saw Rory Skinner get wedged in Christian Iddon's back wheel. Yeah, he was literally stuck between the rear tire and the fairing. His Kawasaki was not stuck, and it careened into Kyle Ryde who also crashed. Thankfully, Skinner appeared to be okay somehow, and Ryde, too. Iddon unfortunately required an ambulance, and another red flag was displayed. The Superbike grid was in such a state that MSVR decided to run a support race before restarting the big bikes. The restarted race was clean for about two turns before Kyle Ryde highsided at the back and collected another rider. Thankfully, the race continued with Ray in P1, G Irwin in P2, Jackson in P3, Bridwell in P4, and Buchan in P5. Buchan fell off the back of the lead pack, Jackson overtook Irwin and then overtook Ray a turn later, when Ray's rear tire went to sleep. Bridwell got Ray the following lap. Anyway after all of the madness, Jackson won the race, followed by Bridwell, who received a ride through during the first stint, Ray, Irwin and Buchan. That's all that matters.
Race 3 Results
Against all odds, Race 3 had a clean start. G Irwin got the holeshot, followed by Ray, Jackson, Bridwell and Buchan. Before the first lap was completed, Ray would take the lead from Irwin, and, of course, put his head down to stay out of traffic and trouble. The running order was stable until Bridwell overtook Jackson for 3rd at Hizzy's on Lap 3. Five laps later, Glenn Irwin regained the race lead when Ray started experiencing tire trouble. Bridewell would follow Irwin through, and capture second place as Buchan found a way by Jackson for 4th. At half distance, it was obvious the processional phase of the race was coming to an end. On Lap 9 Bridwell took the lead from Irwin, and the following lap Danny Buchan maneuvered his BMW by Ray's Yamaha to take the final podium position. On Lap 11 Jackson overtook Ray for 4th position, but Jackson would repay the favor (this time for 3rd pace) on the penultimate lap. Despite some hair-raising riding, no one was able to make an overtake stick and the riders finished Bridewell, Irwin, Jackson, Buchan. Ray finished 5th, barely holding of Tom Sykes and Peter Hickman. Bridewell finally took his maiden win of the 2022 season.
Race 1 Results
As is always the case, the opening laps were a complete frenzy. O'Halloran got the holeshot, and he battled with Tommy Bridewell before Brad Ray showed up to spoil the party and take the lead. Peter Hickman and Leon Haslam got fantastic starts with 4th and 5th positions after the dust settled with Danny Buchan just behind them in 6th place. Skinner, Jackson, Mackenzie, Ryde, and G Irwin all had poor starts, as they all found themselves mired in the midpack melee for Race 1. By lap 5, a breakaway quartet formed, as Hickman gapped Haslam and Buchan, though it was clear that Ray was settling into a groove and easing away from the lead group. By 2/3rd distance, Ray had opened a second gap, while Bridwell, O'Halloran and Hickman remained in formation behind him. Mackenzie had decided that 10th position was not befitting a reigning champion so he turned up the wick, got around A Irwin and started pulling the midpack marauders towards Haslam and Buchan. Tarran would eventually work his way into 5th position, with clear track in front of him. He put his head down, but failed to pull himself up to Hickman, and eventually Mackenzie's valiant charge would end in tears as he crashed on Lap 12. Somehow, Mackenzie's demise inspired Haslam who took up the charge to reach Hickman, O'Halloran and Bridewell. Leon pulled himself within about a half second, just in time to get a front row seat for the mugging (imo) that Hickman put on O'Halloran, causing Jason to have a high speed crash. In the end, Ray finished first with Bridewell 2nd, and Haslam pipped Hickman after Pete ran wide after contact with O'Halloran. G Irwin finished fifth, after following Mackenzie through the midpack. O'Halloran was seething with frustration and rage after the incident after crashing so close to the finish. Drama.
Race 2 Results
If the Race 1 start was chaos, the Race 2 start was mania. Jason O'Halloran took off Brad Ray's nose to get the holeshot. Ray repaid the favor a few turns later to take the lead, and smartly decided to put his head down. Bridewell was in third with Skinner, Mackenzie and Haslam in tow. Then all hell broke loose when Bridewell decided to punt O'Halloran at Druids, same place Hickman had mugged Jason in Race 1. The stewards took an immediate interest in Bridewell's move, which was even later than Hickman's move the race prior. The stewards awarded Tommy with a ride-through. The moment the penalty appeared on screen, Mackenzie went down and was hit (at low speed thankfully) by Peter Hickman. This incident brought out the red flag so the corner workers and medics could tend to Mackenzie and clean up the bike parts strewn around the circuit. The restart was clean with Ray taking the holeshot. Skinner was 2nd with Ryde 3rd, Jackson 4th, and Iddon 5th. Completely different complexion than the opening stint, but if you though the mayhem was over, you'd be wrong. On Lap 4, it started to rain, and a major pileup at the chicane saw Rory Skinner get wedged in Christian Iddon's back wheel. Yeah, he was literally stuck between the rear tire and the fairing. His Kawasaki was not stuck, and it careened into Kyle Ryde who also crashed. Thankfully, Skinner appeared to be okay somehow, and Ryde, too. Iddon unfortunately required an ambulance, and another red flag was displayed. The Superbike grid was in such a state that MSVR decided to run a support race before restarting the big bikes. The restarted race was clean for about two turns before Kyle Ryde highsided at the back and collected another rider. Thankfully, the race continued with Ray in P1, G Irwin in P2, Jackson in P3, Bridwell in P4, and Buchan in P5. Buchan fell off the back of the lead pack, Jackson overtook Irwin and then overtook Ray a turn later, when Ray's rear tire went to sleep. Bridwell got Ray the following lap. Anyway after all of the madness, Jackson won the race, followed by Bridwell, who received a ride through during the first stint, Ray, Irwin and Buchan. That's all that matters.
Race 3 Results
Against all odds, Race 3 had a clean start. G Irwin got the holeshot, followed by Ray, Jackson, Bridwell and Buchan. Before the first lap was completed, Ray would take the lead from Irwin, and, of course, put his head down to stay out of traffic and trouble. The running order was stable until Bridwell overtook Jackson for 3rd at Hizzy's on Lap 3. Five laps later, Glenn Irwin regained the race lead when Ray started experiencing tire trouble. Bridewell would follow Irwin through, and capture second place as Buchan found a way by Jackson for 4th. At half distance, it was obvious the processional phase of the race was coming to an end. On Lap 9 Bridwell took the lead from Irwin, and the following lap Danny Buchan maneuvered his BMW by Ray's Yamaha to take the final podium position. On Lap 11 Jackson overtook Ray for 4th position, but Jackson would repay the favor (this time for 3rd pace) on the penultimate lap. Despite some hair-raising riding, no one was able to make an overtake stick and the riders finished Bridewell, Irwin, Jackson, Buchan. Ray finished 5th, barely holding of Tom Sykes and Peter Hickman. Bridewell finally took his maiden win of the 2022 season.
