BSB Silverstone: Jason O'Halloran beat Tarran Mackenzie to victory in race three

Published: 12 September 2021

Jason O'Halloran holds a 30-point advantage heading into the Showdown

Jason O’Halloran secured his 11th victory of the 2021 Bennetts British Superbike season after another battle with teammate Tarran Mackenzie at Silverstone.

The duo once again pulled away from the chasing pack, with Mackenzie attempting a move at Brooklands with a few laps remaining, only to run wide and allow O’Halloran back through. Mackenzie would repeat the move on the final lap, but to no avail.

Race Two: Tarran Mackenzie beats Jason O’Halloran to victory

The victory means that O’Halloran holds a 30-point advantage over Mackenzie heading into the three Showdown rounds at Oulton Park, Donington Park and Brands Hatch. Both McAMS Yamaha riders showcased their stranglehold on this year’s championship, clinching two one-twos despite them both being battered and bruised after their race one incident.

Josh Brookes completed the podium for the second time today but more importantly he clinched his spot inside the Showdown. The Australian knocks Bradley Ray, who ended the race in seventh, out of the Showdown.

Danny Buchan also secured his spot in the Showdown with a fantastic ride in fourth, with Tommy Bridewell completing the top five. Bridewell was battling hard with Brookes for the final podium spot but ran wide, allowing Buchan through.

Christian Iddon was sixth ahead of the aforementioned Ray, with Lee Jackson, Glenn Irwin and Ryan Vickers completing the podium. Jackson misses out on the Showdown, but Glenn Irwin’s spot is now confirmed.

Andrew Irwin came home in 11th ahead of Peter Hickman and Dan Linfoot, whilst Xavi Fores and Ryo Mizuno completed the top 15.

The red flags were waved on lap 12 of the original race after a crash involving Luke Stapleford. Smoke could be seen coming from the back of his Suzuki on the run down to Brooklands, resulting in a huge highside on corner exit. The track, and his rear tyre, was contaminated with what appeared to be oil.

Gino Rea crashed out at high speed at the end of the Wellington Straight, heading into Brooklands, whilst battling with Mackenzie. Rea was fortunately unhurt in the accident.

Takumi Takahashi and Brian McCormack both returned to the pits at the end of lap seven. Sam Cox returned to the pits at the end of lap one of the restarted race.

BSB Silverstone: Tarran Mackenzie leads a sensational McAMS Yamaha one-two in race two

First published: 12 September 2021 at 14:31 by Josh Close

Tarran Mackenzie secured a sensational, hard-fought victory in the second race of the weekend at Silverstone.

Despite breaking his hand in yesterday’s opening race, during a collision with teammate Jason O’Halloran, Mackenzie was declared fit to ride this morning. Like race one, Mackenzie worked his way through the order before making multiple overtakes at Copse.

Race One: Glenn Irwin seals victory in race one following red flag

Mackenzie took the lead of the race away from Josh Brookes at Copse on the final lap, and was able to keep the chasing pack at bay. Remarkably, O’Halloran, who is also battered and bruised after yesterday’s incident, got the better of Brookes on the final lap to take second, having made up four positions in just over a lap.

Brookes led the majority of the race but had to settle for third. It’s his first podium of the season, and it leaves him just three points adrift of the Showdown. Bradley Ray, who finished the race fourth, holds the final Showdown position as things stand.

Tommy Bridewell completed the top five ahead of Gino Rea and Christian Iddon. Ryan Vickers, Rory Skinner and Peter Hickman completed the top 10. Behind them, Lee Jackson (11th) came out on top in an important battle with fellow Showdown chasers Danny Buchan (12th) and Glenn Irwin (13th).

Jackson is 14 points adrift of the top eight Showdown positions, whilst Buchan now only holds an eight-point advantage over Brookes. Irwin holds a 19-point advantage over Brookes heading into the final race of the ‘main season’.

Luke Stapleford and Kyle Ryde secured the final two points of the race. Newcomer Sam Cox retired from the race on the tenth lap. Andrew Irwin retired from the race with a bike problem at the end of lap 19, whilst Brian McCormack returned to the pits.

The final BSB race of the weekend at Silverstone is scheduled to begin at 16:30.

BSB Silverstone: Glenn Irwin wins chaotic opening race of the weekend

First published: 11 September 2021 by Josh Close

Glenn Irwin has his first victory of the 2021 Bennetts British Superbike season after the opening race of the weekend at Silverstone was red flagged.

The race came to a premature end on the penultimate lap when McAMS Yamaha duo Tarran Mackenzie and Jason O’Halloran collided on the exit of Brooklands. Mackenzie had just gone down the inside of O’Halloran, but lost the rear and highsided. O’Halloran was left with nowhere to go and collide with his teammate’s stricken R1.

Qualifying: Jason O’Halloran takes pole position

O’Halloran had a rough landing and appeared to be in some discomfort in the aftermath of the crash, but was fortunate not to be hit by any of the other riders. The race was red flagged immediately, with both riders being taken to the medical centre.

Irwin was the closest rider to the McAMS Yamaha duo and was therefore declared the winner at Silverstone. It’s crucial victory for the Honda rider, who holds a 32-point lead over the Showdown chasers.

Christian Iddon claimed a much-needed podium in second, his first podium since race one at Thruxton.

Tommy Bridewell extended his podium run to eight races in third spot. Bridewell is 39 podium points behind O’Halloran, whilst Iddon moves to within 37 points of the series leader.

Josh Brookes finished fourth to keep his Showdown hopes alive. The VisionTrack Ducati rider is now only six points adrift of the top eight. Bradley Ray now holds the final Showdown spot after finishing fifth, knocking Lee Jackson out of eighth in the championship. Jackson’s Showdown hopes were dealt a huge blow on lap 10 when he pulled off the circuit with a bike issue.

Gino Rea was sixth ahead of Rory Skinner, whilst Kyle Ryde and Xavi Fores clinched a much-needed top 10 result in eighth and ninth respectively. Luke Stapleford completed the top 10 on the second Buildbase Suzuki bike.

Andrew Irwin was 11th for SYNETIQ BMW, ahead of an impressive Ryo Mizuno and Dan Linfoot. Bjorn Estment and Storm Stacey secured the final two points on offer this afternoon.

The start of the race was a chaotic one. Peter Hickman crashed out spectacularly at Becketts when he made contact with O’Halloran’s Yamaha. Despite not finishing today’s race, Hickman has been confirmed as a ‘Title Fighter’ in this year’s Showdown.

Moments later, Danny Buchan lost control of his BMW when going down the inside of Ryan Vickers at Woodcote and took both he and Vickers out of the race. Despite the DNFs, Buchan remains inside the Showdown with an advantage of 20 points over Brookes. Vickers still has a mathematical chance of qualifying for the Showdown, however he is 26 points behind Ray.

On the same lap, Keith Farmer and Takumi Takahashi also came together. As a result, the safety car was released. Newcomer Sam Cox also retired from the race with a bike problem.

BSB Silverstone: Jason O’Halloran pips Tarran Mackenzie to pole position

First published: 11 September 2021 at 14:06 by Josh Close

Jason O’Halloran narrowly beat McAMS Yamaha teammate Tarran Mackenzie this afternoon to secure his fourth pole position of the 2021 season.

The Australian battled with Glenn Irwin in the early stages for top spot, however it would be Mackenzie who came closest to beating the championship leader. O’Halloran’s best lap-time of 53.169 was only 0.030s quicker than Mackenzie.

Friday: Tommy Bridewell sets the pace on day one

Tommy Bridewell qualified third to ensure that the top three in the championship all start together on the front row. However, his Oxford Products Racing Ducati team have a busy few hours ahead of them after Bridewell crashed heavily at Copse. His Ducati V4 R barrel-rolled through the gravel before coming to a stop.

Gino Rea heads the second row for Buildbase Suzuki and will be alongside Irwin and Ryan Vickers later this afternoon. Reigning champion Josh Brookes moved up to seventh in the final minutes of the session, moving ahead of Peter Hickman and Lee Jackson. VisionTrack Ducati teammate Christian Iddon completed the top 10.

Andrew Irwin crashed out of Q1 at Copse with just over five minutes remaining, but still made it through to Q2. He exited pit-lane with around five minutes remaining in the second qualifying session, and moved up to 11th with his final flying lap.

Ryo Mizuno clinched his best grid spot of his maiden BSB campaign in 12th, qualifying ahead of Danny Buchan and Kyle Ryde. The latter had a crash at Becketts midway through the session. Bradley Ray was 15th, with Rory Skinner, Xavi Fores and Luke Stapleford completing the top 18.

Dan Linfoot missed out on a spot inside Q2 by 0.103s and will start the opening race of the weekend from 19th on the grid. He’ll be joined on row seven by Takumi Takahashi and Storm Stacey.

Bjorn Estment heads row right ahead of Dean Harrison and Luke Hopkins, whilst the final row of the grid contains Brian McCormack, newcomer Sam Cox and the returning Keith Farmer, who failed to set a flying lap this afternoon.

The opening BSB race of the weekend at Silverstone is due to begin at 16:15 this afternoon (September 11).

BSB Silverstone: Tommy Bridewell tops quiet opening day

First published: 10 September 2021 by Josh Close

A quiet, rain-affected opening day of Bennetts British Superbike action at Silverstone ended with Tommy Bridewell topping the combined timesheets.

For the majority of both practice sessions, riders remained in their respective pit garages, waiting for the circuit to dry following quick downpours prior to each session. With a few minutes remaining in FP2, most of the field rushed frantically to improve their lap-time and make it directly into Q2.