Honda Racing ends Oulton Park weekend positively
Continued wild weather in the wake of Storm Amy played a major role at Oulton Park as the penultimate round of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship (BSB) and its supporting classes drew to a close.
Honda Racing BSB stars Tommy Bridewell and Dean Harrison lined up alongside one another on the third row of the grid for Race 2 amid strong winds that were persistently threatening to bring more rain - making setup choices critical.
The pair got away cleanly, but Harrison slid off the circuit and rejoined in last place before the red flags came out due to contamination of the track surface after a major oil spill.
The heavy duty clean-up operation, which covered a 120-metre stretch of the track, meant that there was a two-hour delay in the day’s schedule. When the race was restarted, the conditions were gusty but dry, the distance being shortened to eight laps and the original grid positions being retained.
Again, the two Fireblades got away well, and this time there was no slip-up from Harrison although he was forced to acclimatise while completing his first dry laps on a BSB Superbike since early in the 2024 season. Bridewell began to make progress through the lead group and would eventually take the chequered flag in sixth place, with Harrison reaching the finish line in 15th.
In the third and final BSB race of the weekend, Bridewell started fourth and Harrison 16th based on their fastest laps from Race 2. In a furious slipstreaming battle among the top 10 riders, Bridewell got shuffled down the order to cross the line in ninth place, while Harrison was able to hold station and eventually finished in 15th place once again.
The schedule for the day was shuffled as a result of the earlier hiatus, but the Quattro British Supersport Championship contenders were able to complete the full Feature after a pared-back starting procedure. Honda’s Jack Kennedy was poised and ready to maximise his score in order to remain in the hunt for this year’s title.
The defending champion lined up in fourth place, and at the start all three of the main men in this year’s title battle pulled away from the rest of the field. The trio circulated in close company until points leader Rhys Irwin crashed out, forcing Ben Currie to ride through the gravel trap and leaving Kennedy out in front on his own to claim a vital win.
The Irishman received a rapturous reception from his team and family as he claimed the spoils, closing the gap to Irwin to just 23 points with 70 points on the table at Brands Hatch for the final round in two weeks’ time.
Unfortunately for his many fans in attendance, John McGuinness MBE was unable to re-enter the fray in the Superstock class, as the team was unable to repair the fault on his Fireblade overnight.
Having suffered the only mechanical issue from all of the practice, qualifying and race sessions undertaken by Honda Racing UK in 2025, across both BSB and road racing, McGuinness will return to action at the final round.
Tommy Bridewell
“The third race was a slow race, in fact a really slow race, which was certainly a massive benefit for me, because that enabled me to stay within sight of the leading pack. It’s a difficult position we’re in at the moment, because I feel like I’m just riding around and not able to really fight for victories, which is really difficult. And yet we are making progress and I’m really happy with the team’s effort. All of the guys in the crew are doing a great job, but at the minute we’ve just extracted all that we can from the package. That’s just basically where it’s at for us right now.”
Dean Harrison
“The first race yesterday was just like the wild west, really! The second race we were able to settle in a bit and I actually learnt a lot. Honestly, apart from that little crash we had yesterday I think it’s been a good weekend on the bike. We scored points in all three races and we’re there or thereabouts. We’ll just look forward to Brands now because I think that the characteristics of the track are broadly similar to Oulton Park and what we’ve learned this week we’ll try and implement there. I’ve got my head back into it a little bit so I’m looking forward to it. The lads in the garage never stop working, they’re flat out all the time, and it’s nice that they listen to some of my input and hopefully it will help move both Tommy and me forward.”
Jack Kennedy
“I didn’t have to do a lot of work in that race, I just had to stay patient. I knew from yesterday’s race that it was going to be very difficult for us to pass one another and we’d probably need to take a few chances so it’s very unfortunate for my rivals and I’m glad they were okay. But I’m absolutely delighted with my race and with the changes that we made to the Honda CBR600RR going into it. They helped me to push that little bit harder today. Every win is important, but that one really felt like a special one, especially if we want to make something happen in the final round. It definitely puts it closer to our grasp. It’s all to play for. Being out in front with a big gap was actually strange, definitely different to keep your focus, so I just had to concentrate on my pit board. Massive thanks to the boys in the garage and to Honda Racing UK, we’re back in the title fight somehow and I can’t wait to go to Brands Hatch in two weeks’ time.”
Team Principal Neil Fletcher
“I think that the weekend threw everything that it could at us with the weather and other schedule issues. I was pleased with the way that everyone was able to keep their focus and move forward from one session to the next. It was a baptism of fire for Dean in BSB, but he showed his class and immediately looked at home working with Tommy. Jack really pulled out all the stops this weekend and has given himself the best possible chance of breaking his own record and reaching six Supersport titles at the season finale.”
Bennetts British Superbike Championship 2025
Round 10, Race 2
Bennetts British Superbike Championship 2025
Round 10, Race 3
