Irwin still top of BSB after Donington Park

Glenn Irwin missed out on the podium in race three having led from start to finish in the earlier sprint race at Donington Park

Northern Irishman Glenn Irwin narrowly missed out on a second British Superbike Championship podium of the day at Donington Park on Sunday.

The 34-year-old Hager PBM Ducati rider had already taken victory in the sprint and led for long stretches of the concluding 20-lap race before ultimately finishing fourth behind Jason O'Halloran, Tommy Bridewell and Danny Kent.

Irwin's lead in the standings is now 13 points over Kent.

Starting in the middle of the front row, Irwin fell one spot into third on the first turn but was leading by the fifth lap.

A thrilling back and forth between Irwin and his former teammate Bridewell developed with each taking opportunities to seize the lead.

Irwin would forge ahead from lap 10 through to 18 before dropping to fourth in what was an incredible finale to the race.

O'Halloran's victory, 1.068 seconds ahead of Bridewell who secured a third podium of the weekend, lifted the Australian into seventh place in the standings after eight races.

Kent's third place cut Irwin's overall lead to 13 points while Kyle Ryde, who finished fifth, is a further seven off the pace.

In the earlier sprint race, Irwin led from start to finish as he held off a strong challenge from Leon Haslam over the closing laps.

Irwin's victory, his fourth win of the campaign after his treble in the previous round at Oulton Park, had moved him 15 points clear of Kent in the championship standings.

Kent finished fourth in Sunday's opening race as last year's champion Bridewell took the final podium spot, with Ryde and Christian Iddon completing the top six.

Ryan Vickers, who led the championship after winning the opening two races in Navarra, crashed out on lap four and was reported to have sustained a broken collarbone.

Irwin returned to the top spot of the podium after having to settle for fifth in Saturday's opener when Ryde took victory ahead of Bridewell and Haslam, in a race which had to be shortened after Iddon crashed out.

Haslam came close to securing his first British Superbike race victory since his championship winning campaign in 2018 as he finished only 0.335 seconds behind the Northern Irishman.

Round four of the campaign takes place at Knockhill next month.