British Superbikes: Is Tommy Bridewell v Glenn Irwin like Ayrton Senna & Alain Prost?

Tommy Bridewell and Glenn Irwin have come to blows on and off track this season

Think Ayrton Senna against Alain Prost or Lewis Hamilton's rivalry with Nico Rosberg in Formula 1, or Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo's battle in MotoGP.

Tight fights for a championship in motorsport are always exciting, but there is an extra edge when two team-mates are going head-to-head.

That's exactly the case in this season's British Superbike Championship between Glenn Irwin and Tommy Bridewell.

The PBM Ducati team-mates are separated by just 7.5 points before the final round at Brands Hatch and, having already come to blows this season, it's safe to say the gloves are off.

The contenders

Tommy Bridewell, 35, has been in the British Superbike Championship since 2007 and is gunning for his first title. After a number of years narrowly missing out - he has been third on three occasions and was runner-up in 2021 - this is the English rider's best chance to win the championship.

Northern Ireland's Glenn Irwin, 33, has been a BSB regular since 2016 and, like Bridewell, is looking to win his first BSB crown. A serial winner at the North West 200 road race, Irwin has now transferred that form onto the circuits and was second overall behind Bradley Ray last season.

With 105 points up for grabs you also can't discount Yamaha's Kyle Ryde or BMW's Leon Haslam, who sit 35 and 41 points off Bridewell respectively, but they would need the Ducati team-mates to falter at Brands Hatch.

Kawasaki rider Lee Jackson, Yamaha's Jason O'Halloran, FHO BMW's Josh Brookes and Ducati charger Christian Iddon are all within mathematical points contention but would need a huge swing to take the title.

The season so far

Things started off pretty well between the Ducati team-mates, who were tied together after the opening round at Silverstone as Bridewell held a slender three-point margin despite Irwin's victory in race three.

The Northern Irishman won race three in the second event at Oulton Park to hit the top of the standings, with Bridewell and Brookes - who had won two of the six races to date - four points adrift.

It was Bridewell's turn to hit the front at Donington Park, and although Irwin won twice at Knockhill he still trailed his team-mate - now by 11 points after he crashed out of the lead in race two.

Bridewell had claimed eight podiums in the opening 12 races, and he added to that total with a hat-trick of victories to Snetterton in July - the last of which was by just 0.032 seconds from Irwin - to build his buffer up to 25 points.

A double victory at Brands Hatch, compared to a solitary podium for Irwin, moved Bridewell 34.5 points clear of his team-mate before both Ducati riders struggled at Thruxton, with Irwin narrowly chipping into Bridewell's advantage.

Cadwell Park, the final round before the Showdown, proved to be a turning point for Irwin as he claimed a double on the weekend of his 200th BSB start to slash Bridewell's lead down to 14.5 points.

Tommy Bridewell (front left) and Glenn Irwin (front right) paid their respects to team owner Paul Bird, who passed away ahead of the round at Oulton Park

Things were shaping up for a titanic title battle, but there was sadness before the round at Oulton Park in September when PBM Ducati owner Paul Bird passed away.

The team elected to race on - with black fairings on the front of the bike and a memorial in the paddock in tribute to Bird - and the title rivals continued where they left off once they left the grid.

Oulton was also the first round where there was visible tension between the title protagonists, which started when they were separated by just 0.006 seconds in qualifying - a smaller margin than a blink of an eye.

The pair duelled it out and traded places several times, but a rare Bridewell error, where he ran straight on at a chicane, allowed Irwin to hold on to win the race - with emotional celebrations following the passing of Bird.

There was controversy as Bridewell crossed the line first in race two, but he was penalised for a safety car infringement and Irwin was handed the victory - and subsequently the championship lead.

Bridewell, presumably channelling the anger from the safety car penalty, won race three ahead of Irwin as the pair were split by just 0.5 points going to Donington Park.

"I like to do my talking on the track, Glenn seems to do it both [on and off track]," Bridewell said. "I keep my head down, keep my mouth shut and get the job done.

"There is a divide in the team now - there's no hiding that - and it's all-out war."

The gloves are off after war of words

After those flashpoints, everything boiled over at the penultimate round of the season at Donington Park.

In the second race, Bridewell, who started last, worked his way through the field after a scintillating ride. He came up towards the gaggle of leading riders, which included Irwin.

On lap nine, however, Bridewell got his braking all wrong going into the Melbourne Loop and took both himself and Irwin out of the race.

That sparked a furious reaction from Irwin, who confronted Bridewell in the gravel trap and he had to be dragged away by a marshall.

The end result was a three-place grid penalty and three penalty points for Bridewell, while Irwin was slapped with two penalty points for his reaction.

Bridewell was in ninth the wet final race of the weekend while Irwin was forced out with a technical issue early on - a result which handed the English rider his narrow advantage.

But the drama didn't stop there. Bridewell apologised to Irwin but said his team-mate was "bang out of order".

Irwin accused Bridewell of "rolling around like a footballer" and, a few days after the race, told BBC Sport he had "no relationship" with his team-mate and that "it's hard to find respect for someone you race against when they show none of it back to you".

After their dramatic Donington duel, it all comes down to Brands Hatch.

For some added intrigue, Irwin claimed two wins and a podium at the season finale last year. On the first visit to Brands in 2023, it was Bridewell who came out on top with two wins from three races.

Let the fireworks begin.

• Essential listening from George the Poet: This award-winning podcast offers a fresh take on inner city life through storytelling, music and fiction

• Cillian Murphy's perfect late-night mixtape: With music from Four Tet, Aphex Twin, The Supremes and Sinead O'Connor