BSB Brands Hatch: Christian Iddon wins sensational seven-lap shootout

Christian Iddon came out on top in a seven-lap spectacular in the final race of the weekend at Brands Hatch.

The original race was red flagged on lap 12 when Gino Rea’s Buildbase Suzuki suffered a major mechanical problem – with smoke and flames pouring out of the exhaust. Race Direction were taking no chances and decided that the track needed to be inspected for oil.

Race Two: Jason O’Halloran secures win number four of 2021

Critically, riders were able to change tyres during the interval and therefore the slick tyres were used by the field due to the dry line which was clearly visible on the tarmac – there had been a mixture of tyre choices in the original, mix conditions, race.

Iddon was about to be rewarded for his risky dry rear tyre decision in the first part of the race when the red flagged was waved, so he was more determined than ever to win the second race. The VisionTrack Ducati rider battled hard with Danny Buchan, exchanging the lead with the SYNETIQ BMW rider multiple times.

Buchan soon had Tarran Mackenzie to deal with and as a result Iddon was left unchallenged on the final lap. It’s Iddon’s second victory of 2021 and he now leads the championship once again with 163 points.

Mackenzie crossed the line in second to be crowned Monster Energy King of Brands after collecting the most points over the course of the weekend. It’s Mackenzie’s fifth consecutive podium. McAMS Yamaha teammate Jason O’Halloran completed the podium after putting hard moves on Josh Brookes and Buchan at Stirlings on the final two laps.

Buchan finished fourth whilst Brookes secured his best result of the year so far in fifth. Brookes went from 16th to first on the opening lap of the original race thanks to his wet front and rear tyres. Glenn Irwin was sixth for Honda Racing UK after making a fantastic getaway at the restart, riding as high as second at one stage.

Peter Hickman was seventh for FHO Racing, whilst Lee Jackson, Rory Skinner and Danny Kent completed the top 10.

Tommy Bridewell’s positive weekend came to a premature end when his chain came off a couple of laps into the seven-lap shootout. Moments later Andrew Irwin crashed out of the podium-chasing group at Druids. Storm Stacey returned to the pits and retired from the original race on lap nine.

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BSB Brands Hatch: Jason O’Halloran clinches his fourth victory of the season

First published: 25 July 2021 at 14:51 by Josh Close

Jason O’Halloran is back at the top of the standings in the Bennetts British Superbike Championship after winning race two at Brands Hatch.

O’Halloran took the lead away from Danny Buchan at Sterling on the fifth lap, holding station for a few laps before pulling the pin. However, Bridewell closed him in towards the end of the race and initially put the Aussie under pressure. However, O’Halloran responded and cross the line with an advantage of 2.188s.

Race One – Tarran Mackenzie secures his first win of 2021

It’s O’Halloran’s fourth victory of the season and he returns to the top of the standings. O’Halloran now holds a three-point lead over Christian Iddon.

Bridewell’s second is his second podium of the weekend, whilst race one winner Tarran Mackenzie completed the podium today. Mackenzie had to play catch-up after running wide at Hawthorns on the opening lap.

Danny Buchan finished fourth for the second consecutive race, with Iddon completing the top five for VisionTrack Ducati. Rory Skinner’s impressive run of form continued in sixth place, with the BSB rookie finishing ahead of FS-3 Racing Kawasaki teammate Lee Jackson.

Glenn Irwin, Peter Hickman and Gino Rea completed the top 10, ahead of Xavi Fores, Bradley Ray and Kyle Ryde. Andrew Irwin and Ryan Vickers were the final point scorers. Josh Brookes ran off at Westfield and dropped outside the points, crossing the line in 18th.

Joe Francis had to start the race from pit-lane due to an issue with his iForce Lloyd & Jones BMW at the beginning of the warmup lap. Francis ended the race

After a bright start to the race Danny Kent was forced to retire on lap two with a bike problem. Brian McCormack, Joey Thompson and Takumi Takahashi all retired from the race.

The final Superbike race of the weekend is due to take place at 16:45.

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BSB Brands Hatch: Tarran Mackenzie secures his first win of 2021

First published: 24 July 2021 by Josh Close

Tarran Mackenzie clinched his first victory of the 2021 Bennetts British Superbike season after holding of the challenge of Tommy Bridewell.

The opening race of the weekend was reduced to 12 laps following a red flag at the beginning of lap two of the original event. The red flags were waved following a crash for Brad Jones at Clark Curve. In an update released just before the restart of the race it was confirmed that Jones was unconscious at the scene of the crash and was initially transferred to the circuit medical centre for further treatment. He has since been evacuated by helicopter to Kings College Hospital, London with a head injury. He was unconscious as he left the circuit.

At the restart, as he did in the original race, Mackenzie made the best start and kept his leading heading through turn one. Christian Iddon put the pressure on in the early stages, before he lost out to Bridewell. The Oxford Products Racing Ducati rider was able to stick with Mackenzie for most of the race, but he was unable to put a pass on him.

It’s Mackenzie’s first BSB victory since his triumph at Donington Park last October. The result moves Mackenzie to within 26 points of championship leader Christian Iddon, who finished the race in third.

Danny Buchan was best of the rest in fourth after dropping back from the podium spots in the final few laps. Jason O’Halloran stormed through from 18th on the grid to finish fifth, ahead of Lee Jackson and Bradley Ray. O’Halloran is now 11 points behind Iddon.

Rory Skinner finished in eighth spot after falling back in the closing stages. Skinner was fighting towards the front but appeared to suffer a little at the half-way stage, possibly with his right arm following arm pump surgery less than two weeks ago.

Josh Brookes finished ninth after getting the better of Danny Kent and Glenn Irwin on the final lap. Andrew Irwin (12th), Dan Linfoot (13th), Ryan Vickers (14th) and Kyle Ryde completed the point scoring positions.

Takumi Takahashi crashed on the opening lap of the restart at Graham Hill Bend. On the following lap Peter Hickman’s race came to an end at Surtees.

The second Superbike race of the weekend is due to take place at 14:10 on Sunday afternoon.

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BSB Brands Hatch: Tarran Mackenzie secures pole for race one

First published: 24 July 2021 at 12:32pm by Josh Close

Tarran Mackenzie secured his second career Bennetts British Superbike Championship pole position at Brands Hatch this afternoon.

Mackenzie, who has often been hampered by disappointing qualifying performances, recorded a best lap-time of 1:26.192 on his McAMS Yamaha R1. That was enough to beat Tommy Bridewell by 0.282s. It’s Mackenzie’s first qualifying pole position since Silverstone 2019.

Friday: Danny Buchan tops the combined standings at Brands

Mackenzie and Bridewell will be joined on the front row by FS-3 Racing Kawasaki’s Rory Skinner. The rookie came storming out of the blocks at the beginning of Q2, having made it through Q1, and held provisional pole position several times throughout the session. Skinner was only 0.016s slower than Bridewell.

Bradley Ray led a trio of BMW riders in fourth spot, with Danny Buchan and Peter Hickman rounding out the top six. Championship leader Christian Iddon moved up to seventh in the closing moments, whilst Danny Kent led the charge for Buildbase Suzuki in eighth.

Glenn Irwin and Lee Jackson completed the top 10 this afternoon, ahead of Kyle Ryde and Josh Brookes, who still appears to be struggling on his VisionTrack Ducati V4 R. Ryan Vickers was just behind the reigning champion in 13th and survived an off-road excursion heading down Paddock Hill Bend when he ran wide and onto the gravel.

Jason O’Halloran’s Q2 session came to a premature end when he crashed at Paddock Hill Bend (T1). It looked like the Australian went slightly off the dry line and hit a damp patch. As a result, O’Halloran will start race one from 18th on the grid.

Xavi Fores was best of the rest in Q1 and will start the opening race of the weekend from 19th on the grid. He’ll be joined on the seventh row by Dean Harrison and Storm Stacey, whilst Brad Jones qualified in 22nd.

Bjorn Estment, Takumi Takahashi, Brian McCormack, Joey Thompson, and Luke Hopkins complete the grid. Honda Racing UK’s Ryo Mizuno has been ruled out of the remainder of the weekend after injuring his right hand in a crash during FP1.

Race one in the Superbike class is due to begin at 16:15 this afternoon (July 24).

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BSB Brands Hatch: Danny Buchan takes control on the opening day

First published: 22 July 2021 by Josh Close

Danny Buchan continued his form from Knockhill today at Brands Hatch by topping the combined timesheets.

The SYNETIQ BMW rider, who won two of the three races in Scotland two weeks’ ago, posted a best lap-time of 1:25.382, which was enough to pip championship leader Christian Iddon by 0.076s.

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Jason O’Halloran was third overall for McAMS Yamaha, with teammate Tarran Mackenzie just behind him in fourth spot. Mackenzie was the first rider to drop into the 1:25s today but is currently under investigation – along with Danny Kent and Gino Rea – for an incident at turn four towards the end of FP2.

Glenn Irwin completed the top five for Honda, ahead of Lee Jackson and Rea. Andrew Irwin appears to have found something with his setup on the M1000RR in eighth, whilst Peter Hickman and Bradley Ray completed the top 10. Tommy Bridewell and Kyle Ryde are the final two riders to automatically qualify for Q2.

This means that reigning champion Josh Brookes will have to go through Q1 after ending the opening day in 13th position. The Aussie has endured a tough start to his title defence so will hoping he can find some improvements tomorrow.

Elsewhere, Kent was 14th ahead of Dan Linfoot, with FS-3 Kawasaki’s Rory Skinner ending day one in 16th. The 19-year-old had arm pump surgery the day after his impressive weekend at Knockhill. Xavi Fores was 18th on his return to action. The Spaniard hasn’t raced so far this season after breaking his scaphoid in FP2 at Oulton Park.

Tomorrow’s (July 24) FP3 session is due to begin at 09:55 and will be followed by Q1 and Q2 at 11:45 and 12:04 respectively. The opening Superbike race of the weekend is scheduled for 16:15 tomorrow.