Race 1
Tommy Bridewell and Christian Iddon both needed strong results to keep their title hopes alive going into race 1 of the final round at Brands Hatch. VisionTrack Ducati’s Iddon took the early lead passing Mackenzie in Druids on the opening lap. By Lap 4 Bridewell was into third on his Oxford Products Racing Ducati behind Iddon and Mackenzie, only for the safety car to come out later that lap following a crash by Josh Owens (Rapid CDH Racing Kawasaki). The safety car came in on Lap 7, but Iddon was not able to keep the same pace and Mackenzie took the lead a couple of laps later. Bridewell then got past Iddon on Lap 12 on the run up to Druids, with the riders briefly making contact. The Title Fighter trio went on to take the chequered flag in those same positions, with Mackenzie extending his championship lead.
Race 2
Oxford Products Racing Ducati Racing’s Tommy Bridewell ran another fantastic race at Brands Hatch in Race 2 taking a second-place finish behind Tarran Mackenzie. Bridewell had put in a great move on the opening lap to overtake both Mackenzie and Christian Iddon along the Cooper Straight to take the lead into Surtees, starting his second lap with a 0.597s advantage.
But by half race distance the gap between Bridewell and Mackenzie was reduced to 0.171s with Mackenzie taking the lead back on Lap 12. Bridewell made another move on Lap 15 to retake the lead at Stirlings, setting up a thrilling final as he needed to beat Mackenzie if he was to keep any title hopes alive. But Mackenzie got great drive out the last corner on the last lap to take the chequered flag, and the 2021 crown, by 0.087s. Iddon crossed the line in fourth, his own title hopes also coming to an end, with his VisionTrack Ducati teammate Josh Brookes taking sixth.
Race 3
Tommy Bridewell completed his final race of the season with another podium position, finishing second at Brands Hatch for the third time this weekend. In a repeat of Race 2 Bridewell led for most of the race but was unable to provide an answer to newly-crowned Mackenzie on the McAMS Yamaha. Bridewell’s final second place ensured that he also secured second in the championship, going one better than the third place he secured with his Ducati team back in 2019. Iddon was on for another strong finish on the VisionTrack Ducati but a late incident with SYNETIQ BMW’s Danny Buchan saw them both crash out of the race.
Josh Brookes had a much better end to his season on his VisionTrack Ducati after getting his best result of the weekend finishing just off the podium in fourth.
Championship positions
- Tarran MACKENZIE (Yamaha) 1202
- Tommy BRIDEWELL (Ducati) 1166
- Jason O’HALLORAN (Yamaha) 1162
- Christian IDDON (Ducati) 1141
- Peter HICKMAN (BMW) 1092
- Josh BROOOKES (Ducati) 1079
Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Products Racing Ducati #46) – 2nd
“Brands Hatch, phenomenal weekend. To come away with second in the British Superbike championship is a credit to the Oxford Products Racing Ducati team. The team’s done a phenomenal job, the bike was working flawlessly all weekend. We’ve got a bit of work to do for 2022, already thinking about that, but to come away fighting for the race wins, every single race, and to come away second in the championship is a thumbs up from me. Thanks for all the support, I really appreciate it. We’ll see you back in 2022.”
Josh Brookes (VisionTrack Ducati #25) – 4th
“The weekend’s been a reflection of our year in that we’ve been aware of what the problems have been, but we’ve been unable to fully resolve them. We’ve made the best of it and seen progress in the last few rounds with some better results which was how this weekend went. It’s been a constant battle between front and rear end grip and when one’s better, the other’s worse. But we’ve got to the end of the season and I can guarantee everyone, I’ll be back. This year hasn’t been a reflection of myself in terms of my motivation or my desire to win and that’s as strong as I’ve ever so I’m looking forward to the time off and coming back even stronger in 2022.”
