Carrick’s Glenn Irwin expects his season-long rivalry with British Supersport rival Alastair Seeley to be a box office hit at this month’s Sunflower Trophy meeting at Bishopscourt.

Irwin and top British championship outfit Gearlink Kawasaki will compete at the short circuit finale at the Co Down track on October 24/25, with BSB rider Ben Wilson and Irwin’s Supersport team-mate Luke Hedger also set to make the trip.

Confirmation that Michael and Norma de Bidaph’s close-knit team will be on the Sunflower grid is another significant feather in the organisers’ cap, with Mar-Train Racing pair Seeley and Dean Harrison plus newly crowned National Superstock champion Danny Buchan on the Tsingtao Kawasaki adding plenty of sparkle to the Hillsborough Club’s showpiece.

Irwin’s stock has soared this season as the 24-year-old showcased his true potential, chalking up four wins on the ZX-6R to emerge as a consistent podium contender.

The happy-go-lucky Ulster prospect and fellow Carrick man Seeley are major adversaries and with local pride at stake, Irwin is predicting a Supersport showdown not to be missed.

“A lot of people talk about the rivalry between myself and Alastair and it’s what the people want to see; they’re going to have that on their doorstep,” Irwin said.

“There’s an extra rivalry this year with Alastair and with both of us being local I’m sure people will want to watch us at Bishopscourt. If I could get one or two wins over him it would make for good viewing and it’d be brilliant. But if we won the Sunflower race that would just be a dream.

“Of course you want to win the 600cc races but you really want your name on the Sunflower Trophy. My dad’s won it a few times and you’ve got riders like Jonathan Rea and his dad Johnny who have won it as well.”

Irwin won’t have a Superbike at his disposal for the feature race but in his typical never-say-die approach he isn’t ruling out the possibility of causing an upset on the Gearlink 600.

“Bishopscourt is very much a track of two halves and the first part will benefit the Superbike riders, but the second half is more like Supersport territory and with a bit of luck we can challenge the likes of Danny Buchan,” he said.

“Obviously Ben [Wilson] would be one of my big rivals on the Gearlink Superbike. I know he’s struggled a bit in BSB this year but he’s been pretty fast at Bishopscourt before and I wouldn’t be ruling him out. Luke [Hedger] is also a talented rider and you can’t dismiss him either.”

Irwin’s younger brother Andrew – who finished second in the National Superstock 600 race at Silverstone – is also entered in the MWR Kawasaki team along with James Egan.



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