Christian Iddon feeling good going into the Showdown

Christian shares his thoughts on his season to date heading into the Showdown

“Everything has been going pretty good this year, except for the last couple of rounds. Everywhere we’ve been strong. At Brands Hatch, which was three rounds ago, I felt the best ever I’ve been on the bike. It wasn’t my best round in terms of results, but it was definitely the best I’ve felt and the most at one I’ve felt with my bike, the most in tune.

I was really looking forward to Thruxton, even though it’s not really been known as strong for us. I kind of thought we could really throw up a surprise there. We had the difficulty then of Wilf getting really poorly, and sadly that round turned out to be as the form book tends to suggest anyway which was a real shame.

We then had Cadwell which was probably worse as we didn’t expect the results we got, and our main championship rival actually scored really highly, which they hadn’t done at Thruxton.

The situation now is one of those that it is what it is. We’re still fourth in the points which is not bad but are trying to win the championship. There is a 60 odd point deficit but however we now are into the Showdown part of the year where the points ramp up.

This year we’ve been hammering in podiums at pretty much every round and that’s all well and good. But now we need to do that and up the game a little bit. We must make sure we’re outscoring out main championship rivals to at least head the pile, so as to be in with a shot of taking the championship.

We’re now going to three tracks that we know from this year. Oulton was a triple podium for me. Donington was difficult because I had a crash, but I set the fastest lap of the weekend. And Brands Hatch was the best I’ve ever felt on this bike in two years. So, we’re going to known quantities, and I feel pretty good about it.”

A challenging weekend for Oxford Products Racing Ducati at Cadwell Park

Ian ‘Hammy’ Darbyshire reports back from Cadwell Park, which hosted Round 8 of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship over the Bank Holiday Weekend.

Historically last year wasn’t much of a ‘party in the Park’ for us with three lots of seventh place finishes so we were certainly hoping for better results this time round. Even though it was over a Bank Holiday and normal track action moved forward a day, we were also treated to the traditional Friday night Superbike test, with a two and half hour open pitlane.

It can’t go without saying that we had our boss back. As most know Wilf has been incredibly unwell and will still be recovering for some time, but he wanted to get back to support what he has built up over the last 15 seasons. We used the test to try new stuff with the new package we run in the bike. We made the most of the open pit lane and struck off 42 laps trying a few different things. We finished 2.220s off but satisfised we’d tried the right things. Then the fun began…

Saturday was a day of chasing our tales on both bikes with the rain and track conditions not being consistent at all throughout the day. We had a heavy down pour but a quick drying track as in general the temperatures were still warm. Both boys struggled to concentrate on a single set up or at least a set up that worked within a certain window. Christian didn’t have too much pressure to set up his weekend. Ben however didn’t go out in the first session meaning we had to go out in the second session to put a time in to put us in good stead for the rest of the weekend. Saturday saw Christian twelfth overall and Ben first. 

Superbike
Christian Iddon (Oxford Products Racing Ducati #21)
“I really didn’t envisage this weekend being so tough. From the first test I just didn’t feel a connection with the bike or get it to do with it what I wanted to do. On Sunday we had a difficult FP3 and that continued to a very difficult qualifying. Leading straight into Race One I was just involved in so many things. I was caught in a collision off the line. I also had another bike stop in front of me which I had to take evasive action to avoid which messed up turn one. Also, we had a few glitches with the bike, and then also got hit with a time penalty. Overall, though, more concerningly was the overall lack of pace we had. 

I woke up Monday with a fresh mind and keen to turn it around but unfortunately that wasn’t the case which is incredibly disappointing. I do however want to forget about the last two rounds and move forward. 

The last three rounds we know we’ve been quick from the first visits earlier this season so we know we can go well. Yes, we’ve dropped down to fourth in the championship, but the biggest concern is losing a lot of points to Kyle and Tommy. Both riders had a strong weekend. It’s tough to know where the difficulty lies this weekend between me and the bike but that’s when the team needs to come back together and go again. As always, a huge thank you to the fans, my personal sponsors, the team and their sponsors also.”

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Supersport
Ben Currie (Oxford Products Racing Ducati #1)
“That was a tough, tough weekend. The last couple of rounds have obviously been super tough for us as a whole team for both Christian and me on both sides of the garage. But I'm in really good spirits. 

We fought hard at Cadwell to try and get a bike that can challenge the front two, which were on phenomenal pace all weekend. With the slight lack of track time prior to qualifying and races due to bad weather, it did make it for a tricky time for me and the team. 

The second place in Saturday's race was a little bit of a gift because Jack unfortunately crashed out from second place, which actually gave us our biggest lead of the championship so far with 17 points going into Sunday. 

Unfortunately, I completely messed up Sunday's race and yeah, it wasn't part of the plan, let's just say that. Where I didn't have the pace to sort of challenge all weekend, I decided that I was going to try and settle for a good podium if I could. But once I set off for the race, the racer in me came out and I felt like I could challenge, so I wanted to stick in there as long as I could. I finally had a bike underneath me that I was capable to do the job, that's just how it is with the lack of track time that we had. 

The team were unbelievable to give me a bike there all of a sudden that could challenge with, and I got a little bit excited and then maybe just dropped concentration for a split second. I ran slightly wide, minimally wide, and lost the front end of the bottom of the mountain. That was that for Sunday's race. I lost a huge chunk of points again, which is massively unfortunate, but with six points back in the championship lead we are more than in this fight. 

With three rounds to go, there's three of us separated by six points, which is absolutely crazy for this part of the season. It’s going to make for a really exciting finish to the championship and I'm sure people are going to absolutely love it, and to be honest I can't wait to be a part of it. 

So, I'm confident the last three rounds should be good for us. And the added bit of confidence that I gained at Sunday's race to turn things around was good, so I'm really looking forward to the end of this season. Let’s keep pushing.”

A tough home round for Oxford Products Racing Ducati at Thruxton

Ian ‘Hammy’ Darbyshire reports back from Thruxton, Round 7 of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, located just half an hour away from the team's Ducati dealership base in Winchester.

As most will know we went into one of the toughest weekends on the calendar for us without our team owner and Crew Chief Wilf. It certainly made a tricky task tougher, but the team were fully up for it and wanted to prove to the boss we could step up.

It’s historically a hard track for the Ducatis and we weren’t expecting 2024 to be any different.

We approached Friday like any other race weekend. We drafted in extra help from one of our previous staff members Cat and some remote support from Wilf where possible. The aim going into the round was trying to give the boys bikes that were stable enough to push on and so as to obtain as many points as possible.

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Superbike
Christian Iddon (Oxford Products Racing Ducati #21)

"We went into the weekend knowing it was going to be difficult. We’d lost our boss, owner, and crew chief in Wilf due to illness. As hard as this was for us it’s worth mentioning it must have been 10 times harder from him being on the sideline in hospital. Everyone knows how difficult the track is for us but actually I went into it really optimistic because I’ve been riding really well and the team's been working really well. I’ve scored good points there in the past on a Ducati so I saw no reason why we couldn’t stick it to them.

Friday showed that we had some pace. We worked our way through the schedule, and we were happy, even with it difficult to validate changes with a tricky schedule.

Saturday rolled round and qualifying was difficult, meaning we didn’t have the best grid place. I set off in Race 1 on the unpreferred tyre for our bike and felt really good on the Ducati. I was able to pick up grip, turn the bike and put it where I wanted without feeling like I was doing too much damage to the tyre. I managed to pull myself from 15th to first. By getting to the front my thought was I could save more tyre there instead of fighting and battling for positions mid pack but I must of burnt too many matches on reflection after watching it back and we finished P9. I felt pretty good for Sunday but I knew the pace was going to be a lot faster based on how much we were down on lap times on Saturday.

Roll on Sunday we just lost everything. I had no grip, struggled to turn the bike, and it was hard to know what changes there were other than the much higher temperatures. The sprint race was a short dash due to the red flag but again with the higher pace it was very difficult. On the last corner of the last lap I made a mistake which I was really disappointed I made but P6 was our finishing position.

From very early on I knew the last race was going to be a battle. As the race went on it just got harder and harder and there was nothing I could do other than hold on for as many positions as possible.

As weekends go we didn’t lose a huge amount to the rivals we came into this weekend with, but we did open the door to three other title contenders making the championship now wide open with us not as close to the top as we'd hoped."

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Supersport
Ben Currie (Oxford Products Racing Ducati #1)

"That was a tough weekend for both myself and the Oxford Products Racing Ducati team. But we came away with a fourth, and a third in the Supersport feature race, a brilliant way to end a hard weekend.

We dug in for that result. Everyone in the team played a huge role this weekend, especially in the absence of our team boss and Crew Chief Wilf who was unfortunately missing due to illness.

We’re currently just four points off the championship lead, so we just need to keep working in this direction and attack the last half of this season, which should bode well for us.

Now it's back to work for Cadwell Park, where hopefully we come into the weekend prepared and ready to fight."

Oxford Products Racing Ducati score three podium finishes at Brands

Ian ‘Hammy’ Darbyshire reports back from Brands Hatch, Round 6 of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship.

Hammy
Friday comes and its back to business. We were very relieved to see a clear weekend on Wednesday looking at the weather reports of mainly summer sun with the odd cloud cover.

Both Christian Iddon and Ben Currie came into the round knowing how big this one was and we were just as aware. Halfway point, the turning point, or the point you look back at come round 11 and say, ‘but what if!’

Ben started off our track action and we were happy to have a longer practice for the Supersport class. Both riders had solid days with Ben topping the time sheet and Iddon having a positive day with the strategy we approached.

It is very clear Supersport has become a three-four rider championship due to the disparity within the pack. Even though we topped the sheet this was not a sign of an easy weekend or even the race favourite. Jack is incredible strong with their bike getting better and better. And you can also never underestimate Luke’s class or speed!

Iddon’s championship on the other hand is still open and wide. Before this round we’ve had eight race winners, a total of twelve different podium finishers, ten different teams reaching the podium and five different manufacturers claiming the top spot. This just shows how close this season has been so far. The sessions were absolutely scorching with track temperate way over 40 degrees. Overall, we finished eighth combined and only 0.363 off P1.

Ben Currie
“After being combined first overall for Friday’s practises and then going and putting it on pole during qualifying, things were only looking up. And the ten-lap Sprint race on the Saturday was a proper colossal battle every lap of the way. Me and Jack pulled away from the rest of the field and it all came down to the last lap. I made a pass and unfortunately ran wide a couple of corners later and lost back the lead and couldn't regain it, missing out on the win by literally a thousandth of a second. Really unfortunate.” 

Christian Iddon
“Overall we’ve had a really good day. It’s strange because you could be ninth or tenth on the time sheets but still be less than a second off. Sticking to our plan and strategy is where we need to stay focused. Race pace is good, and we’ve had a good feeling from rolling out for the first time. I felt good during qualifying but just struggled to get the lap together and we ended up P9 for race 1 which is a long race of 20 laps. 

“Sat on the grid and it was hot, but not as hot as Friday, so I knew the race was going to be fast and hard. Lights go out and I get a good launch and fight straight to the first group sitting in fourth. We broke into group one pretty quick, and it was a pretty good battle between Glenn and Tommy which I was just working out. They were taking chunks out of each other, and I was faster in certain areas but not fast enough to make it count and I also didn’t want to get tangled up in that battling and put us on the back foot. I was in second at one point then Andrew caught the group out of nowhere and fourth was the result at the end of day one. I was kind of frustrated as I felt there was a better result there to be had but it just didn’t come together. On a positive note, I was happy with the feeling my bike gave me and I was riding well too.

Hammy
Even though Ben had a mega race and Christian gained a couple points on the championship we all wrapped up for the night on Saturday feeling a little hollow and obviously hungry for more. The team this year is different; we look at racing differently, we approach it differently, and we want it more than ever and it’s tough to not let the ‘ok’ results feel like a total loss. But the desire we have running through us now is infectious and it inspires me and Wilf to give everything for the team.

Sunday… the big dance! The night before the whole team spent the night together which doesn’t always happen due to hotels, caravans, motorhomes, and team living. It was awesome just to all sit, relax and just talk about life. Come Sunday morning this had clearly carried on through as everyone was really positive, and I could feel an air of confidence in everyone and their respective roles.

Ben Currie
“Sunday came around and I had an opportunity for redemption. We had a different game plan going into the race, which was to follow Jack and pressure him but unfortunately it wasn't to prevail as the same scenario as the previous race followed.

Jack tried to break us in the middle part of the race, but I hung onto him, managed to set the fastest lap of the race, and closed the eighth tenths of a gap that he had back in, and I made a pass on the last lap to take to lead.

Unfortunately, I made the similar mistake that I made in the first race, and I ran a little bit wide. He snuck up the inside of me, and this time I lost by half a bike length, four thousandths of a second. Being a carbon copy of Saturday's race was very unfortunate, and as you could expect I was a little bit miffed off.

But I'm now thoroughly looking forward to Thruxton and feel like it could be a very strong round for us. It was a round last year that we took a double victory at so let's look forward to that, especially as it’s the local round for the Oxford Products Racing Ducati team. And in the meantime, I have a test with the team at Cadwell Park in early August. I can’t wait to get going!” 

Christian Iddon
“Roll on to Sunday and the first race. I lost the rear on the first corner, and I just thought, jeez this weekend is bad. Just no luck. Red flags, hit twice by riders and this time basically I was down and had crashed. It just went and I don’t think I bedded the tyre in enough on the warmup lap as the revs dropped and it just went and just again the bike recovered it. If it had gone another two-three inches, then it would have been a big old high side and likely a trip to the nearest hospital!

Got back on it and again not for the first time this weekend I was dropped down the order but just got my head down and was determined. From there I just made moves, the bike allowed me to make moves. I felt so good. We keep changing a certain part of the bike and incrementally bit by bit the bike’s just got better and better and I arrived at a point where I could just make moves in places I don’t think I’ve ever made here on any bike.

The way the rules are our bike gets hurt because our bike isn’t fast where it used to be so making these moves felt insane. I made good ground and tried to relax as much as I could of the middle part of the race. I mean trying to relax while the current champion is hunting you down as I could see from my board isn’t easy, but I managed to remain relaxed and used my board perfectly. I just allowed the bike flow and save any tyre which isn’t easy banging out 25’s but it allowed me to without too much risk. As I saw the board hit zero from the rider behind and thought any change I have to go. I saw Kyle make the smallest mistake, just allowing the bike to wheelie just a touch more than he had any other lap coming onto the back straight, so I had to go even knowing he's supreme into that corner and knowing he’d likely try hit back anyway, but my bike made it stick. I was expecting someone to come back through and make a move as we have different weakness to the two bikes behind us, but it was nice to ride smooth and box it off. It was genuinely one of the most enjoyable races I’ve ever had. Wouldn’t have said that if I had finished fourth, it would have ended one of the worst…

–None of us had anything for Ryan. We’ve been racing for second this weekend, so we all need to improve, but credit where it’s due. But from our side we couldn’t have done more. I think result wise we could have had more but that circumstances were against this weekend, nothing me or the team could have done better. It just generates close lap times so I’m really, happy, specifically happy with how the bike’s allowing me to go fast, especially the last race where we were hitting 25’s for the whole race.

We lost a few points to the top of the championship which I’m not happy about as the gap to the top is all I care about, and I know the team do too. But it was also nice to beat Tommy in a one-on-one battle as obviously with Glenn’s misfortune this weekend he wasn’t able to race us as he normally would be, I’m genuinely happy to see him ok.

The next round will be interesting as everyone knows the Ducati struggles at Thruxton but I am genuinely excited because I’ve had a podium there before on a Ducati and I am sure Wilf and the boys can do their best to find that window that works, but we will see. Just a huge thanks to the team not stopping this weekend and always looking for the extra bit. We are really strong together at the moment and it feels good.”

 Photo Credit: Danny Easton

Two podiums each for Christian Iddon and Ben Currie at Snetterton

Ian ‘Hammy’ Darbyshire reports back from Snetterton, Round 5 of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship.

Superbike

Hammy: "As the 2024 season has proven so far… nothing is straight forward! After a very tricky Knockhill we were hoping to keep our heads low and strike off the races but maximising the points that were on offer. We knew from the off the weekend was going to be plagued with inclement weather and choices that could dictate our future.

Both Chrtistian Iddon and Ben Currie had a fairly straight forward Friday although the weather was unsure of what it was doing, and became the theme of the weekend. At the end of play Ben was top of the combined sheets and Christian was 6th, but not without drama!"

Christian Iddon: "I came into this weekend confident but under no illusion how tough it was going to be. This weekend was a huge one for us at the midway point, but we did start on the back foot. Unfortunately, I had a tip off in FP3 which just came out of nowhere. It happened so fast I didn’t have time to react. By the time me and the bike were back it only left the lads 29 minutes to strip the bike, fix it and get it out for qualifying. They pulled it out the bag and I left pit lane with enough time for about 8 laps. P9 was the best I could do but the bike was back in one and we had some work to do."

Hammy: "In all honesty Race 1 saw everything thrown at us. Through making a mistake we lost time in the pits and Christian didn’t make the grid. We were absolutely devastated as the lads had worked so hard to get the bike perfect again. This meant we started from pit lane. As the lights go out all we can see is all our rivals riding away from us."

Christian Iddon: "We opted for a slick rear as starting from the back we had nothing to lose and with the track looking to dry I could try push through if it did and also set a quick time to aim for Pole in race 2. I just struggled as it didn’t dry quick enough. I was lucky to even stay on the bike. In a quick change of luck, the race was red flagged, and we had the opportunity to get things right. A quick restart saw us overtake around 10 people into the first corner and I was on the charge. We went from looking at scoring no points to taking home a P6 and incredible slice of luck.

We made mistakes and Saturday could of been fatal for us, but we managed to salvage something from the race. We certainly took a lot from that race, learnt, and formed a plan to make sure we came back stronger."

Hammy: "Race 2 saw us start from P7. The race set off with a hot pace but yet again we were seen to be playing chess with the weather. The race got stopped again and we were pulled into the pits. We were held for a short time as it became dry, we chucked in some fresh rubber and reformed on the grid. Got a great start which was ace as there was a couple of groups before the restart. We were racing hard, and places were changing corner by corner. We ended up in a great, close, and fair battle with Kyle Ryde. We were absolutely thrilled to come over the line in P3. To turn things around was so satisfying and validated the team’s efforts."

Christian Iddon: "We started race 3 from P2 wedged in the middle of the championship leader and 2nd. I just needed to get my head down and try and win. Lights went out and I got the holeshot. I set into an early rhythm and started to try stretch the group a little. Before I knew it Tommy and Glenn were on my tail and pushed me back to 3rd. I could see those two were riding amazing but crazy hard. I wanted to sit and follow but lost some pace and dropped off a little. As the fuel lightened, I started to close the gap again. I was running out of laps but gaining each time round. One lap to go and I was close enough to have a go if the right gap was there. But I ran wide as I was right on Tommy’s tail and that was it. Rolled over the line in P3. I'm happy as the weekend could have been so much worse for us. We also gained positions in the championship and left in 3rd, 17 points off P1.

Brands is a track I love and with the package we have I can’t wait to get there and see what we can do together! I just want to thank Oxford Products, the team, their sponsors, and my personal ones too."

Supersport

Ben Currie: "Snetterton was another crazy weekend really with high drama and high action, but I guess that's what it's all about when you're battling for a British title. But I'm thoroughly enjoying every challenge that's thrown my way, and I think we're dealing with it pretty damn well, both individually and as a team.

I also feel like we're currently maximising the points that we can get as well, so playing for the long game. Unfortunately, this weekend I could have had two wins, but lady luck was against us ever so slightly

The whole weekend I was on the pace from free practice, top in FP1 and top in FP2. We had really bad weather for qualifying where I managed to qualify fourth, which I felt was using my head a little bit, but also making sure that I wasn’t in the danger zone back in the pack.

The Sprint race on Saturday got going after many delays, and in and out laps, and it ended up being a shortened race at held about 6:30pm in the evening on a really wet track. But it was really cool wet race, and one I enjoyed a lot. I was battling really hard with Kennedy after not feeling the greatest in the wet on my motorcycle. But we managed to make quite a big step, which was super, super positive for me because we needed to improve this area and we took it all the way down to the wire.

But what was potentially going to be cruising home to a comfortable five second win, after Kennedy fell out of the lead right in front of me on the last lap, was not to be as unfortunately I ran into a slight mechanical issue in the last corner and my bike completely died on me. I thought that was going to be that, and zero points. But I managed to fire my bike back up and because we were so far in front, I managed to limp it across the line in second place somehow.

I felt good going into Sunday and a dry race. I knew this was probably going to be a little bit better for us, and what a race it was. It was just a back and forth battle the whole race, trying to get to the front of the race, just in case the race was stopped at any point.

After leading on and off I finally got to the front of the race with one and half laps to go and really trying to close it out to get the win but unfortunately the red flag came out because of the weather. It felt a bit premature for me, but the decision had been made. It was a bitter pill to swallow because when you get beaten on track it’s easier to take because you’ve been beaten on the day, beaten by the better man, and you go back to drawing board and try and improve and get better.

But in these circumstances, I feel like the win was taken away from me and I wasn’t able to have a chance to actually win the race, especially after being in the lead when the red flag came out, and that’s really disheartening.

But we’ll take and use that feeling to stoke the fire for the next round and try and take the wins there. The most important thing is we’ve come away from this weekend with a ten-point lead, and after trailing by nine points coming into the weekend at Snetterton, turning that deficit round is a huge positive."

A story of two tales sees Iddon finish Round 4 on the top step

Ian ‘Hammy’ Darbyshire reports back from Round 4 of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, held last weekend at Knockhill, Scotland.

Race weekends are nearly a week for the team. Half of the team get to circuit on a Wednesday to get started. Fast forward to Saturday… our first race day! This saw Ben starting his first race in P27 and Christian in P9. The run up to this point had not been kind to us at all. This was due to lots of variables, but we were determined to put it behind us and try and be positive to secure as many points as possible.

First up was Christian. We were faced with an opening that was five laps shorter than scheduled due to some horrendous rain downpours delaying track action for over two hours. P9 and the third row meant Christian was fired up to make things right and be at the front in the first group. The lights go out and that’s what happened. A great start sees him make up places and sitting in the front group. Showing good pace with a change of set up which clearly helped us meant he could push harder. Moving further into the race the pace was dropping slightly but we were still in a position to not only secure good points but also make ground on the boys in front of us in the championship due other DNFs and rivals scoring lower points. Unfortunately Christian was taken out by another rider and that was that. We were so frustrated but knew we had another two races to try and make things right.

Meanwhile Ben found himself in unchartered territory. P27 is not a place we wanted to be especially at a track like Knockhill where the track is narrow, and the lap is short. Normally in this situation you need to pass as efficiently as possible with a bit of slip streaming and timely passing; this was not going to be the case. Last few seconds before the lights go out Team Owner Wilf’s last words to Ben were “You can’t wait or hesitate; you just have to pass as soon as you are on somebody.”

In true Ben fashion he did as he was asked. He jumped nine places into the first turn and we knew it was on. He was a man on a mission and relentless. He just kept pushing and pushing and as he made good ground on the pack, he kept getting quicker. Any other style track and he would have podiumed. We were elated to see him bring it home in P5 in class. Also, we secured Pole position with a 49.158 and an ideal time under the lap record.

As a team it had been a pretty draining few days so the lads got sorted with the bikes and Sunday prep so we could clock off and re set to give us a fresh start for Sunday’s race schedule.

Sunday morning and it’s a wet Scottish morning. Warm up sees Christian third fastest and Ben fifth fastest.

First on Sunday's action was the second Superbike race which was a 20 lap dash. 20 laps around Knockhill totals 25.33 miles which doesn’t sound much but this leaves the riders no room for error in a physical and action-packed lap. We started the race from eighth and Christian got a lightening start…

Christian Iddon - SBK (Oxford Products Racing Ducati #21)

"We have some fancy electrics which get us a mega launch as long as I do my bit right. This is a big help being confident getting off the line. Made the great start and go into the spray laced T1. The aim of this was get ahead as quick as possible. First five/six laps the bike left amazing and I was trying to form the best plan to ride on and win. Mid race distance and I lose a little rhythm with making just a couple of really small mistakes. The game plan at that point changed after Saturday’s misfortune. I knew it was a case of retaining the best points we could which was second. Five laps to go we are faced with a very small issue meaning I had to change my riding style dramatically. We just came over the line in second which in honesty was an epic result all things considered from holding my arm in worry in the gravel Saturday to now standing on the box. I left that race knowing we had some work to do with both the team and me, but I was fully motivated to hang it all out there for Race 3.

Race 3 starting from P2 on the grid sandwiched between Danny on pole and Rory on P3. Off the line and head down. My initial thoughts for the first few laps were to get out front and try and keep Rory close so I could race wise and form a plan. Rory has been so strong into the hairpin all weekend, but my bike was mega, and I out braked him and passed him without any dramas. Now It was a case of head down and control the race. For the next bunch of laps, I found am amazing feeling and was striking off the laps. Then before we knew it the track started to dry up and it was like riding on ice. I was trying my best to keep the heat out of the tyre and riding as sensible as possible, but it was impossible. Some points I could feel the tyre spinning up in fifth. I knew I had to do everything to manage my position as I now find the rear coming around on me and causing some interesting moments. Although it was a massive struggle my board was telling me the rider behind was having the same issue as the gap was managed well. I thought it was likely Tommy behind me as he’s riding so well. So, these couple points at this stage could be huge at the end of the year, so it wasn’t the time for any heroics.

P1 over the line… the first win of the year and the seventh different winner of the season in Superbike which shows how high the level is in this championship. The perfect race really, Led every lap, fastest lap of the race, and finishing on the top step!

Saturday looking back is tough to take as the way the rest of the weekend went it would of seriously hiked us back up the table. Even with all the trouble and drama we still made great ground on the championship, and we leave only 23 points off P1. It felt like one of the longest race weekends of my life. P1 feels like it’s been coming for a while but to be able to secure it and give that to the team was mega. They never give up looking for the extra bit and it’s coming together great. Next up we head to Snetterton where I’ve always gone well and the Ducati has good history so I’m excited to get back at it."

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Ben Currie - BSS (Oxford Products Racing Ducati #1)

“What an absolute crazy roller coaster of a weekend! Coming into Knockhill after a few weeks off we would like to think that we would have hit the ground running a little bit better, but the weather had other ideas for us, that's for sure. Free Practice 1 and 2 were soaking wet and we struggled in the wet conditions. It’s normally one of my favourite conditions as I see it as an opportunity to get really good results against riders that aren’t as confident as me. But I just didn't have the feeling. Even so the Oxford Products Racing Ducati team and myself worked really hard to turn it around and evaluate the data after Friday's practice and put a good bike out for Saturday morning.

We knew that rain, hail or shine we were going to be a lot better and a lot closer than what we were, so I was confident going into Saturday. Unfortunately, we had a little bit of an unforeseen bike gremlin, one of the most random little mechanicals that was just so bizarre that ruled us out of qualifying. Without being able to set a lap time 27th on the grid was the best we could do. We knew the Sprint race for Saturday afternoon was going to be a huge challenge. And the race was cut short because of weather delays, so time was against us in the race as well.

However the track dried out, the sun came out, and it was a 22-lap dash for me from 27th and I managed to pick off a ton of riders to finish sixth, fifth in the class. I was honestly so happy with that recovery. The Panigale V2 was amazing. We were on lap record pace pretty much, set the fastest lap, and, having missed qualifying that weekend, I still hadn't done a dry lap! To have that sort of pace and be that strong out the box is a real credit to the team, so a huge thanks to them for that.

I started the feature race on Sunday from pole position, which was going to make life a lot easier. However, conditions were different once gain and they were really, really tricky conditions in the wet. I knew it was going to be a challenge however the boys gave me a really good bike to fight for the win and I swapped places several times with Jack Kennedy for the lead.

Jack just got the better of me at the end of the race. Lapped riders got involved and that did it for me. But I was really happy to take second and not lose too many points. It could have been a disaster of a weekend, but we fought tooth and nail for every point. I hope when we take the championship at the end of the season, we will look back at Knockhill and be grateful for what we did.

There’s obviously still a long way to go yet, I’m nine points back in the championship. But I’m so confident that we can turn things around, and we’re right there in the fight. Thanks to everyone involved, all my mechanics, the team, everyone’s working so hard. And also, thanks to my sponsors for always supporting me. We keep rolling, and now onwards to Snetterton.”