British Superbikes, Knockhill: Christian lddon- nearly “crashed on the grass because I saw the red flag”

Christian Iddon finally got to realise his potential in the final race at Knockhill, leading for most of the race and going on to be declared the winner after a red flag to allow Leon Haslam to exit the track after a fall.

The Oxford Products Ducati rider has looked good in race one before falling with with Ryan Vickers and had the opportunity to see victory in race two as he chased down Rory Skinner before bike issues hampered his progress:

“We had a few issues in the second race today but it is what it is and we finished second, so it’s still a great result. I felt absolutely brilliant on the bike at the start of that race and I think Tommy said  something really similar - when the track was wet my bike gave me so much confidence and feeling and grip".

• 2024 British Superbikes: Knockhill - Race Results (2)
• 2024 British Superbikes: Knockhill - Race Results (3)

Aware of Rory Skinner’s track knowledge - and pace after winning the first race - Iddon knew he needed to be quick to act in race three but was surprised at where his race winning overtake took place:

“The first opportunity that I got, which was surprisingly the hairpin because he’s been so good into the hairpin, and my bike felt good… I passed him where he was the strongest in the previous race and I felt like I had a bit more pace than him. So I got through and yeah 30 laps around here is super long so I just eked the gap out a little bit, tenth by tenth and then I could see Tommy behind.

Like all the podium finishers, Iddon had found the track conditions tricky to deal with:

“ I kind of just tried to maintain the pace and then the track really started to dry out and it got super greasy - like I was really struggling to even stay on - you know, there were a few times the rear came around”.

The #21 revealed the red flag nearly caused him to have a fall of his own as he was in the middle of taking turn one when it caught him by surprise:

"The red flags came out - it kind of caught me off guard - I actually nearly ran off track and crashed on the grass because I saw the red flag and it sort of caught me out - I was tipping into turn one…I hope Leon’s alright”.

The race win completed a turnaround of his race weekend and was a long time in the making - it is Iddon’s first BSB win since 2021 at Brands Hatch. The move also sees him make headway in the overall standings up to fourth leaving Scotland and now just 23 points behind series leader Bridewell.