Be Wiser Ducati’s Glenn Irwin and his crew threw everything they had at Sunday’s Bennetts British Superbike double header but grip over race distance eluded them and the young Irishman slumped to ninth place in the second race.

Irwin proved he had one-lap pace by taking an historic pole which also saw team-mate and younger brother Andrew on the front row but Thruxton’s fast and abrasive nature proved a problem too big to solve.

“We tried everything we could all weekend but while it was clear from qualifying that we had pace for one lap, doing it for a full race distance was extremely difficult and we struggled,” said Irwin.

“It wasn’t through a lack of trying on anyone’s part and we constantly tried settings to improve the balance of the bike. We’ve suffered the same fate for two years in a row now so it’s hugely frustrating.

“On the plus side, we haven’t lost much ground in terms of the championship position and we’ve gone well at Cadwell Park recently, so I’ll be aiming to get back on the podium there.”