It’s all eyes on Thruxton for round seven
As the season's halfway mark comes and goes, Honda Racing UK shifts its focus to round seven of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship and the fastest circuit on the calendar; Thruxton. The 2.3-mile Hampshire circuit often produces some of the closest racing of the season with tyre management critical to race times due to the high average lap speed and the circuit’s abrasive surface.
Sitting proudly atop the championship standings thanks to eleven podiums from seventeen races this season, local lad Tommy Bridewell targets an extension to his championship lead at his home venue. He heads to his local circuit encouraged by the form of the Honda at his local circuit in recent years.
A previous Honda winner at Thruxton, Andrew Irwin returns to the circuit for the first time since 2022 having missed last season’s event due to injury. A recent run of five top-six finishes and his second podium visit of the year indicate that he is very much back in the fight at the front of the field.
Dean Harrison meanwhile heads to Thruxton eager to get some solid championship points on the board. Personal best lap times at multiple circuits this year reveal encouraging signs that points are certainly up for grabs should he come out on top in the ultra-tight midfield battle.
Aboard his CBR600RR, Jack Kennedy has made it five wins from the last six outings in a dominant display of Supersport success. Just four points back from the top of the championship standings, Jack is eager to add to his supersport win tally of 64 victories.
Track activity for the Honda team begins with Friday’s Free Practice sessions, ahead of the weekend's racing action. For a full timetable please click here.
#1 Tommy Bridewell
I’m excited to head to Thruxton for my home round, it’s such a unique circuit and it is always about being patient and managing the tyre, often it’s not always the fastest that wins the race but the person who can maintain the lowest average lap speed, so in some ways it can be quite a tactical race but I think the Honda will be good there. There is going to be a lot of work to get through this weekend because we have two different tyre compounds to work with in the different race distances, so we will need to get a solid setup working for both, which in truth, means we have a lot to get through in practice. The target is to go out and enjoy my home race and work hard with the team to maximise our potential.
#18 Andrew Irwin
We’ve built up some positive momentum of late which I am keen to continue heading into the next round. There is a small step we need to make to be fighting for race wins but I am certain that as a team we will make that step in due course. Thruxton is always a circuit that can throw up a mixed result, tyre management is key but we know that this is a strength of the Fireblade. I’ve had some great success at Thruxton over the years and it is always a circuit that I’ve enjoyed racing at, so let’s see what the weekend brings.
#5 Dean Harrison
Last time out at Brands was the first time that we’ve had a weekend free from mistakes or problems and it enabled us to make some good progress and build throughout the weekend. I don't think the race results really reflected where we were relative to our pace. We were in a train of riders scrapping for eleventh and I was disappointed to not finish at the front of that group really. This weekend I’m hoping we can continue to make progress and get points on the board. Thruxton is a strange track really, but I think that the Fireblade is going to suit the circuit. It’s all about managing that tyre, so being gentle on the throttle and getting our maps dialled in.
#4 Jack Kennedy
I’m excited to go racing once more on my CBR600RR, the team and I have been working so hard behind the scenes to keep pushing this project forward and we have a few tweaks to the bike this weekend that I am excited to try. Thruxton can sometimes create some unpredictability in the result as managing the tyre is so important. I learnt so much last year racing a superbike there and I think all of that knowledge and experience will be of great benefit this weekend, especially in the longer 18-lap feature race. I have a good record at Thruxton and I can’t wait to get back out and give 110%.