Oulton Park - Round 9
It was an eventful but incredible start to the Showdown for the Oxford Products Ducati Racing team at Oulton Park this weekend, with Tommy Bridewell riding amazingly well at one of his favourite circuits to secure two second places and a brilliant win.
He was consistently fast from the start and the practice sessions went well with a couple of small changes. He got straight through to the Superpicks 12 qualifying session and started the opening race on Saturday from the front row in second.
He had a good start and looked strong throughout the whole race and consistently battling for a podium position. He managed to make a break on third place but was unable to catch leader Brad Ray, finishing in second place.
For race two on Sunday afternoon, he started from third on the grid. Another good start saw him fighting at the front but unfortunately Tommy had a coming together with Jason O’Halloran, the race was red-flagged due to another incident on circuit and Tommy was given a 15 second penalty so he had to start from 22nd place. He worked his way through the pack on the re-start, but another red flag saw him line up in 7th on the grid. Once the race finally got underway it was a 7-lap dash to the finish, Tommy worked hard and eventually got himself to second place and a good handful of Championship points.
For the final race of the weekend, Tommy dropped back to the second row in fourth place due to a penalty from race two. The race was cut slightly shorter to 15-laps, but Tommy was eager for another strong result. It was a real battle at the front and several riders were in the mix for the win. Tommy made some strong moves and got himself to the front of the pack. He kept focussed for the remainder of the race to take an impressive win, elevating himself from eighth in the Championship standings to second!
Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Products Racing Ducati #46)|
“Firstly I must apologise to Jason and McAMS for the incident in race two, I’m sorry and that is never my intention to do anything like that and it’s not the way I ride.
It was a strong and positive weekend to come away with two seconds and a first. I feel like we made some positive steps to understand the bike and get the best out of the package. I think we can make some good leaps at Donington before the races.
I’m still in with a chance of this Championship and I will be fighting until the last race at Brands to ensure we do all we can.”
Iain Hopcroft, Team Manager
“Oulton Park did not disappoint once again! Our favourite track mixed with some great riding and awesome teamwork made for a dramatic weekend. Now we can really fight for this Championship, bring on Donington!”