Triple podium for Tommy at Snetterton
It was an exceptionally good weekend for the Oxford Products Ducati team at the Snetterton-300 circuit. Tommy Bridewell gained two brilliant third places and went one better in the final race of the weekend to secure second place. He is currently second place in the Championship standings as we leave to Norfolk circuit.
It was an exceptionally good weekend for the Oxford Products Ducati team at the Snetterton-300 circuit.
Tommy Bridewell gained two brilliant third places and went one better in the final race of the weekend to secure second place. He is currently second place in the Championship standings as we leave to Norfolk circuit.
It has been no secret that the Ducati are struggling with the new tyre compounds, which in turn is causing the bike to have serious chatter problems. Despite this, Tommy and the Oxford Products Ducati team worked tirelessly all weekend to find a comfortable set-up. Qualifying was tricky and Tommy could only secure 11th place on the grid for the opening race on Saturday.
Tommy got a good start and was eighth after the opening lap; the safety car was then deployed to clear up an accident, bunching all the riders together. Tommy took advantage once the car came in and moved through to sixth place and slowly working his way through the competitive field. He was soon making some strong passes and was up to third and hunting down the leaders, bridging the gap on every lap. With not enough laps left in the race Tommy had to take a strong third place.
He was elevated to the front row for the second race of the weekend and was eager to take advantage of that. He held his position of third place from start to finish and was sitting in second place in the Championship standings after race two.
Back to the second row for the final race of the weekend and Tommy started from fourth place. He got a great start and moved through to third place after the opening lap. It was a fraught race and about eight riders were able to run the pace at the front. They were swapping and changing each lap and at one point Tommy dropped back to fifth. He had to get his head down and work hard to make up positions. He took advantage of Brookes and Iddon running wide and briefly led the race. Tommy was locked in a battle with Iddon, Brookes and Lee Jackson and a final corner manoeuvre on Iddon saw him move through to second as the chequered flag came out.
Tommy Bridewell: “It was a tricky one this weekend, it was difficult. We struggled with the bike; we had a few issues that we couldn’t find a solution for. I’m happy to come away with three podiums as I feel like it could have been a lot worse but thankfully it wasn’t.
At the end of the day after what was a very hard weekend for us, we came away with two thirds and a second so we have to take all the positives from that. We made some good changes for the final race and that was definitely in the right direction. We have to see where we are at Silverstone and see what we can do there.
It’s been a very good start to the season, a win and podiums have given us some good points in the Championship which is the main thing. We were hoping for more at Snetterton but some issues held us back, but the team will address these before we get to Silverstone and see if they can be fixed. The Oxford Products Ducati team worked exceedingly hard as always this weekend and we have come away second in the Championship.”
We also had great success in the Ducati Cup races with Josh Day taking another two wins to extend his championship lead.
And John Hopkins got plenty of attention in his Alpinestars/Moto Rapido suit at the weekend’s MotoGP after riding some parade laps on a Moto2 bike at the Redbull ring.
Tommy triumphant at Donington
It was such a mixed weekend for the Oxford Racing Ducati team at the opening round of the Bennetts British Superbikes Championship at Donington Park. Tommy Bridewell secured a fifth in the opening race, ninth in race two and then he went on to get a fantastic win in the third and final race of the weekend.
It was such a mixed weekend for the Oxford Racing Ducati team at the opening round of the Bennetts British Superbikes Championship at Donington Park. Tommy Bridewell secured a fifth in the opening race, ninth in race two and then he went on to get a fantastic win in the third and final race of the weekend.
After being troubled with set-up issues throughout practice and qualifying it was bitter sweet to end a tough weekend with an amazing win.
The team worked incredibly hard all weekend to get a bike Tommy felt comfortable on. They had a lot of new settings and components to test and they had to pack it into a short space of time.
Tommy qualified for the opening race of the weekend in eighth place. He got a steady start but had to work hard to carve his way through the pack eventually securing a solid fifth.
His consistent lap times gained him a front row start on Sunday for race two. The second race was fraught with a lot of pushing and shoving going on. Tommy lost one of the famous Ducati wings into turn one when he was hit by another rider, this caused a few issues with the handling of the bike. Tommy pushed hard and was sat in third place but had to take avoiding action into the chicane in the closing laps, running across the gravel and dropping several places to ninth at the chequered flag.
His times were once again super consistent and fast enough to put him on pole position for the final race of the weekend. Tommy was gone as soon as the lights went green; no one saw which way he went. At one point he opened up over a four second lead and was looking dominant. His lap times were great and at one point broke the lap record before it got broken again a few laps later by another rider. He eased off a little with four laps to go but still took an awesome win, two seconds ahead of the second placed man.
Tommy - “To be honest I’m very very happy to get the win. We struggled all weekend and we had a number of issues that led me to feel really uncomfortable on the bike, free practice and qualifying were really tricky. We kept our head down and we were happy to salvage a decent qualifying and get a result of fifth in race one.
We really got the bike going well for race two; we tried some things in morning warm-up and then went bold with more changes for the race. It was a shame I made a mistake going into the last chicane and ran through the gravel. I’d worked so hard in that race, got a bit beaten up, came back through and dug deep to challenge for the win. Two laps to go and Andrew (Irwin) stopped his bike a lot sooner than I, and I like to carry corner speed; I had to swerve to miss him, which caused me to run straight on.
Starting from pole made it a lot easier for the last race. I didn’t have a game plan, I wasn’t sure if I had the pace to lead from start to finish. I expected another big dog fight like the other two races but I felt good off the line and the time on my pit board just kept going up. I didn’t want to ruin the tyre as it was 26 laps with a track temperature of 40 degrees. I thought I’d push really hard for a few laps but saw the lap times going up and up. At that point I just thought I had to keep riding the way I was. The credit must go to the team, they were flawless and worked so hard to get me comfortable on the bike, and honestly I can’t thank them enough for this weekend and the effort and hard work that they have put in.”
“It was sad not to have the fans there and my thoughts also go to anyone that has been affected by covid over the last few months. We are lucky to have been allowed to come racing and do what we do best and thanks to everyone involved in letting us do that this weekend. I am looking forward to Snetterton and hopefully we can get a few more wins there.”
Final pre-season British Superbikes test completed at Donington Park
Tommy Bridewell and the Oxford Products Ducati team completed the final pre-season British Superbikes test at Donington Park yesterday, testing a number of new additions to our Ducati Panigale V4 R that included a new exhaust system from our sponsor Termignoni.
Tommy Bridewell and the Oxford Products Ducati team completed the final pre-season test at Donington Park yesterday (28th July), testing a number of new additions to our Ducati Panigale V4 R that included a new exhaust system from our sponsor Termignoni.
As outright lap-record holders around the National circuit, we spent the going through a thorough testing plan rather than chasing lap times.
The day went to plan and we are looking forward to returning to Donington next month (5-7th August) for the first round of the revised British Superbike calendar. The team will have their work cut with 3 races scheduled for the weekend.
Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Products Ducati #46)
"It's been a productive day and the bike's working relatively well. It's nice for the whole team to be back working together. It's been a long old time since we've been back in force really. We've still got a lot of work to do, we've got a lot of new stuff on the bike. But I'm happy and looking forward to getting back here, racing on the Oxford Products Ducati Panigale V4 R."
Iain Hopcroft (Oxford Products Ducati Team Manager)
"We've had a very productive test. And it is a test for us. We've been testing the new exhaust and some other bits and pieces that we've got this last few weeks over lockdown. We weren't out for lap-time, we weren't interested in that. We are lap record holders here at Donington National so that wasn't the plan for us today, it was quite nice to have that pressure taken off of us. Now we've got a good setting for when it comes to racing, we wanted to try all the other stuff out, especially fuelling with this new exhaust. Termignoni have made us a lovely new pipe, a lot lighter and gives us more horsepower gain, at a circuit like this it's invaluable.
Tommy stuck to the schedule, but he does get a little bit frustrated, all riders do because they just want to go fast. But we've had a very good day. Stayed upright and got some figures the guys and girls can chew on, fuelling, engine brake and chassis stuff. Not just for the National but also when we come back here to the full circuit too.
It's been great having everyone stick with us in this lockdown period. Everyone's been very supportive, and we've been doing a lot of research and development, so now we can hit the ground running with some really nice parts and support. "
Oxford Products Ducati team launch
Tommy Bridewell and the Oxford Products Ducati team were at the Oxford Products HQ in Witney earlier this week for the 2020 team launch.
Tommy Bridewell and the Oxford Products Ducati team were at the Oxford Products HQ in Witney earlier this week for the 2020 team launch.
Despite the lockdown and lack of racing we've been as busy as ever to ensure our Panigale V4 R is fully up to speed for Tommy to challenge for the british Superbike title this year. The team are looking forward to getting back to the track, with the BSB restart now less than a month away.
Tommy Bridewell: "I'll go to any level it takes to become British champion this year. That's what I will do and hopefully it works."
Team Principal Steve Moore: “2020 has been a bizarre year for motorsport, so we are very pleased to continue with title sponsor Oxford Products in 2020 and welcome several new sponsors to our team including Tracker UK, Rock Oil, Super Soco and Avon Forest Services."
Oxford Products Ducati team go electric
Oxford Products Ducati has ‘gone electric’, at least in the paddock, as we partner with electric bike brand Super Soco. We recently unveiled our new 2020 livery for the upcoming race season, complete with electric scooters from Britain’s most popular electric motorcycle brand, Super Soco.
Oxford Products Ducati has ‘gone electric’, at least in the paddock, as we partner with electric bike brand Super Soco.
We recently unveiled our new 2020 livery for the upcoming race season, complete with electric scooters from Britain’s most popular electric motorcycle brand, Super Soco.
The partnership is supported by contra-marketing and made possible by the fact that Super Soco have an official licensing arrangement with iconic Italian brand Ducati, illustrated by the striking MotoGP inspired version of their CUx electric scooter.
Super Soco have supplied two of their popular CUx models, perfect for the busy race paddocks with their lightweight, nimble chassis’, so they can be easily stowed away in pit garages and transporter units. One silver machine has been painted in team colours alongside the supplied-as-standard Ducati liveried model, for quick access through the different areas of the paddock.
Tommy Bridewell will use one of the machines as his paddock transport throughout his 2020 British Superbike campaign, as he looks to better his impressive third place in last season’s standings at this prestigious race series which is broadcast across the globe.
The deal with the British Superbike team gives Super Soco great brand awareness to a wide audience as they continue their strong marketing drive to potential customers. The UK distributors realise that leisure motorcycle riders like to enjoy big power at the weekend but are maybe resigned to a public transport commute in the week, so are encouraging them to keep “petrol for the twisties, and electric for the cities!”
Super Soco brought along another supported motorsport machine, a fire-breathing Citroen DS3 R5 full factory spec car, one of only two in the UK.
Iain Hopcroft, Team Manager for Oxford Products Racing Ducati; “This is a great tie-up for us as not only do Super Soco make ideal products for our paddock usage, they are also Ducati licensed, which is a really good fit with no ‘brand conflict’.We can offset some of our own carbon emissions and their silent running means we are not annoying anyone in the paddock, which is ironic as Tommy is probably the loudest rider! Super Soco have been following our progress for some time, are very passionate about the racing and our youth programme, so it’s great to have them onboard.”
Andy Fenwick from Super Soco UK, has been active in motorsport for 25 years and sees great opportunity within the race paddock; “We’re really excited about this partnership as the BSB series has massive reach on TV and social media, whilst Moto Rapido are one of the most professional teams within this arena. We believe more teams will move to electric power for their paddock equipment for the many benefits shown and that in turn highlights the machines to the public. It helps that Tommy is a fantastic character, so we’re really looking forward to enjoying our partnership through the 2020 BSB series and beyond.”
2020 Teamwear available now!
Our latest teamwear is now available to purchase online via Clintons. Show your support for Tommy Bridewell and the team!
Our latest teamwear is now available to purchase online via Clintons. Show your support for Tommy Bridewell and the team!
The 2020 teamwear collection consists of the following items:
Jacket
Fleece
Hoodie
Polo shirt
T-shirt
Kids hoodie
Kids t-shirt
Backpack
Umbrella
Shop now via clintonenterprises.com