Tempers flared during the second British Superbike Championship race after Scott Redding was taken out by Andrew Irwin in a crash that lost him the series lead.
Redding was running eighth on lap three after a poor start from the front row caused him to drop back when he was hit at Park by the wayward Irwin, who misjudged his braking point and had no chance to avoid T-boning the Be Wiser Ducati rider.
Taking them both out of the race, an incensed Redding immediately made a beeline for Irwin and began remonstrating with him, with the Honda Racing rider’s defensive reaction seemingly confirming he was the one at fault for their DNFs.
Redding made his feelings abundantly clear, briefly appearing to slap Irwin’s helmet and lunging at him more than once as they argued.
On-board replays from Irwin corroborated his fault in the incident itself, the Thruxton race winner coming from a long way back and struggling to slow the Honda CBR1000RR before slamming into the side of Redding’s Ducati.
Why was Scott Redding so angry?
The duo were later seen talking again after the race with Redding seemingly still angry at the outcome. The incident has particular resonance with Redding after the pair clashed during the opening round at Silverstone and left the ex-MotoGP rider with bruising.
“What happened in today’s second race is just one of those things in racing and we just have to move on," Redding commented. "The disappointing thing is that it was the same rider that knocked me off at Silverstone earlier this year and that’s what makes it even more disappointing and frustrating. The good thing is that I didn’t get injured.”
Irwin – who is in contention for one of the Title Showdown spots - was subsequently punished with two penalty points, bringing his season total to five meaning he will be forced to start from the back of the grid at the next BSB round at Oulton Park.
Despite the unsatisfactory outcome, Redding did officially book his place in the six-way Title Showdown with a round in hand though he lost the championship lead to his team-mate Josh Brookes.
More crucially, Brookes also nudges ahead in terms of podium credits with 40 versus Redding’s 38, making him the de facto leader once the Title Showdown gets underway.
View a video of the incident here
