Wet weather again greeted the BSB paddock for the sprint race at Knockhill, round four of the championship. The tenth race of the season brought a sixth different winner for 2024, with Rory Skinner using his home advantage to take vict🦹ory.

The Cheshire Mouldings BMW Motorrad rider had played down his home hopes on his return from injury, stating he was in the market for three finishes. A climb through the pack on Saturday saw him collect second𓆉 and earn second on the grid for the sprint.

With less overtaking needed, Skinner was soon out front taking the lead out of the hairpin, his preferred overtaking spot, from Tommy Bridewell on the first lap.
 

• British Superbikes, Knockhill: Bride♊well - “I needed to lead into turn one!”
• B🐽ritish Superbikes, Knockhill: Home advantage helps Skinn🔯er to podium return

Tꦦhe lead was advantageous in the conditions, with all the spray behind making visibility difficult. The #11 was able to keep a fairly consistent gap between him and whichever rival held second.

The short nature of the lap means hitting back markers is fairly inevitable - an unfortunate Louis Valleley was unaware of the flying Scotsman too late and ended up in the gra𝓰vel while by the time he met Jamie van Sikkelerus it was much clearer there was no-one near with the pair exchanging thank you gestures for the sim🍷ple pass.

Leading over the line by a final 4.895, Skinner picked up his first ever British Superbikes win.
 

The battle for second was fierce with Bridewell, Christian𓆉 Iddon and Danny Kent all in play.

It had been race one winner and polesitter 🍰Bridewell who initially settled into second, but he was passed by a confident Iddon at the start of lap seven, who then took up the chase. Kent behind seemed to feel he was being held up by the Honda rider and w🍬as next to pass, soon gapping the champion.

🍌The Oxford Products rider developed a series of issues on his bike as the race went on, unable to shift properly with the bike also misfiring under the wall of spray on track.

That saw him run wide on lap sixteen but recover, The McAMS bike behind w🅰as lined up for an overtake at the hairpin, which resulted in Kent having his line and eye taken, following in sympathy and cutting a frustrated figure in the gravel.

That🎐 set up a run to the line which ended in a photo finish as Bridewell noticed the issues and pi꧙cked up the pace. Side by side, Iddon was awarded second with Bridewell completing the podium.

The cra🎶sh elevated an already season’s best performance by Storm Stacey, who had started tenth and made rapid progress to fifth, seeing hi𒊎m place fourth for LKG Euro Car Parts Kawasaki.

Fifth went to Charlie Nesbitt, another seasons best ꦑresult for the MasterMac Honda rider, after a long battle with Fraser Rogers, who took the chequered flওag in sixth for TAG Honda, another best.

The new best results kept coming with many riders able to impress in the wet - as Billy McConnell was not far behind in seventh for C&L Fair🧜burn/Look Forward Racing.

Back of the grid to eighth for Glenn Irwin after penalty

Race one saw Glenn Irwin expected to exit the race, shown the black and orange flag as the riders behind, particularly O’Halloran, had to sit ba♛ck to be oꦑut of the cloud of smoke billowing from his Ducati.

His failure to pull in as soon as possible saw him handed four penalty points. Irwin already had two penalty points to his credit for his part in his incident with Bridewell back in Doningt🎶on last season.

Six points earns a back of the grid start, so that iꦕs where the #2 bike lined up for the sprint.

The Northern Irish rider was up to seventeenth after lap one and the overtakes kept coming, finishing🅰 eighth and picking up an incredible ninteen places f🍌or PBM Ducati.

The last rider passed by 🦩Irwin was Lee Jackson, who kept in touch to try to t𒉰ake the place back, but had to settle for ninth on the second MasterMac Honda.

Max🧸 Cook survived an early scare after touching the kerb, heeding the warning to stay upright for a top ten finish for Comp🐓letely Motorbikes Kawasaki.

Lewis Rollo was again the top Pathway rider, with his home knowledge helpful on the Aprilia. As high as ninth, the Scottish rider placed eleventh, 🍰just ahead of Josh Brookes who was agai♕n the best of the TT returnees in twelfth.

Danny Buchan spent much of the race in a battle for 15th b🌠ut pulled clear of Luke Hedger to find a🍷nd pass an ailing Kyle Ryde and claim 13th for DAO Racing.

Kyle Ryde managed a huge comeback after a tough start to the weekend, with sickness and a qualifying fall to contend with, finishing fourth. A repeat was on the cards in race two but after a solid start, the OMG Grilla Yamaha rider started his slide backwards in the tricky condi🃏tions, finishing 14th.

Hedg✤er pi💛cked up the final points place, 15th for Whitecliffe CDH Racing Kawasaki.

Official British Superbike Knockhill Records:

Lap record: Rory Skinner (Kawasaki, 2022) 47.126s

Knockhill in 2023:

Round 4
Qualifying: 
1: Glenn Irwin
2: Ryan Vickers
3: Jason O’Halloran

Race 1 (Sprint):
1: Glenn Irwin
2: Kyle Ryde
3: Jason O’Halloran

Race 2:
1: Kyle Ryde
2: Tommy Bridewell
3: Jason O’Halloran

Race 3:
1: Glenn Irwin
2: Tommy Bridewell
3: Ryan Vickers

Crashes, injuries and replacements

Ryan Vickers was absent for ꦫwarm-up, having picked up the same stomach illness as his teammate Ryde. It was decided he would sit out the second race to attempt to be ready for the third later today, with more time to take on 🐓food and fluids.

Andrew Irwin was the first to exit the race from third p🌞lace.

Jason O’Halloran soonജ followed as he struggled in the wet, with Franco Bourne next into the gravel.

Leon Haslam had topped the wet warm-up session before the ra💖ce, but is hamꩵpered by injury, with a 13th on the grid start not helping his cause.

The battered and bruised ROKiT HAslam BMW Motorrad rider was up in fifth when his bike s🤪topped, taking him out of contention.

Peter Hickman had bike issues of his own on Saturday that didn’t appear to be over when he pulled int🥂o the pits again.

Championship Standings

Its all change at the top with Bridewell doing enough ouﷺt front as Irwin recovered from his penalty to take over the overall lead, just two points ahead on total of 125.

 Kent remains third after his DNF, with Ryde staying fourth. Iddon moves up to fifth with 100 points after Haslam failed to finish, with race winners O’Halloran and Vickers still 7th and 8th despite not pick🎀ing up any points.