Tommy Bridewell forced to retire from SBK Race 1 at Portimão

• An unlucky first WorldSBK race for Superbike Advocates Racing after Bridewell crashes while closing in on the points zone

An innocuous crash prevents Superbike Advocates Racing and rider Tommy Bridewell from completing their first ever Superbike World Championship race at Portugal’s Autódromo Internacional do Algarve.

Earlier in the day, Bridewell was out for a third and final practice session. Having placed fifteenth in Friday’s free practices, team and rider were eager to take another step but an early crash unfortunately limited both the team’s work and the rider’s track time during this brief 20-minute session, with Tommy placing nineteenth.

Two hours later, this brand-new WorldSBK team readied itself for its first Superpole qualifying session. With only fifteen minutes in which to make his mark, Bridewell made an encouraging first exit before pitting to put in a fresh tyre. Back on track for the final minutes of this brief phase, Tommy did well to take seven tenths off his best practice time, setting a 1’40.456 with which he qualified twentieth. The result meant that the Superbike Advocates Racing rider earned himself a spot on the sixth row of the grid for the weekend’s first race.

Race 1 ran over a distance of 20 laps and in dry conditions (track temp. 38°C, air temp. 21°C). Making a clean getaway, Bridewell positioned eighteenth in the early stages, part of a large chasing group. Gradually increasing his pace as the race went on, he was up into sixteenth by lap eight. His progress was unfortunately cut short after a crash at Turn 14 forced him back to the pits, the rider ultimately forced to retire from this first race. Morale nevertheless remains high in the garage, the team confident that Sunday’s races will bring a more positive outcome.

Superbike Advocates Racing will be back out tomorrow for the 10-lap Tissot Superpole Race and the second and final 20-lap SBK race.

Tommy Bridewell (Superbike Advocates Racing #46)
“A bit of a tricky day, and a steep learning curve, which is good, I think. I can see exactly what I’m doing wrong and it’s just down to lack of WorldSBK riding experience. The positive thing is that, in seeing the data, I can visibly see where I need to improve. And I know how to do it; I just need more track time. One aspect is that in WorldSBK there’s a lot of upright heavy braking with the rear, which isn’t really the case in British Superbike, so I find I’m using the front too much. The crash in the race came down to the same braking issue; I started using the rear brake but with too much lean angle. It’s a fine line and, like I said, a learning curve, but we’ll get it right.”