Tommy Bridewell (Superbike Advocates) joined the 2026 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship grid a round late, but that hasn’t stopped the British rider from showcasing his talent. The #46 has taken a best of P5 twice this season on the Ducati Panigale V4R, but he’s also got a vastly different lifestyle to a lot of riders thanks to his ‘other job’ – he’s a farmer when he’s at home and the Wiltshire-based rider has spoken about this.
“MY TRACTOR HAS NEEDED QUITE A LOT OF WORK DOING TO IT…”
Perhaps nothing sums up Bridwell’s home life than when he got back home from Donington Park. The 38-year-old, who celebrated his birthday at the start of August, was straight back down to business after taking P5 on home soil – in his barn, working on the tractor. Sometimes, he’s out feeding animals, cutting grass or doing other forms of manual labour, all while combining this with his training routine.
Speaking about his lifestyle, Bridewell said: “I've got a very different lifestyle to most other racers, I imagine. I come home and the next day I'm either out in my tractor or feeding the sheep, cutting grass or doing manual labour. My tractor has needed quite a lot of work doing to it, so as soon as we came back from Donington, I was straight into the barn, stripping it down. I’ve just finished that in fact, and then I’m obviously still flat out training every day. I get up in the morning and train, whether that's the gym or running, cycling, swimming... I do a lot of different things; I’ve been out rock climbing recently, which was quite good fun.”
On his summer training routine, Bridewell added: “I’d say my training schedule changes a bit through the summer because normally your hard work is done over winter where you really beast yourself. You are mentally and physically broken and then you need to recover and recharge before the start of the season. Once the race season begins, I follow more of a maintenance programme, where instead of really high intensity sessions on the push bike or fast runs and hill sprints, I'll do more endurance style stuff because my fitness is already at the level I need, so it's just a case of maintaining that level of fitness. I’m also out riding of course. I’m fortunate to have a V4 R that I use for training and for track days and, when I ride, I focus on where I feel I need to improve. Right now, that's my riding position, as I want to get my body lower, mid-corner. And I want to stop covering the rear brake mid-corner. Different things, and I'm never too proud to watch videos, learn, listen and see how I can take a step forward.”
“I HADN'T FLOWN SINCE MAYBE 2022, BUT I’VE RECENTLY GOT BACK INTO IT”
It’s not just farming where Bridewell perhaps differs from his competitors. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, he was aiming to get a pilot’s licence after taking up the activity back in 2015. There are also other aspects to his lifestyle, including property renovations. Bridewell said: “Not many people know this, but I first started flying back in 2015. I wanted to get my private pilot's licence but then things got crazy with the pandemic, my racing and various commitments. I hadn't flown since maybe 2022, but I’ve recently got back into it and is something I really enjoy. We also do property renovations and stuff like that – there’s always something going on!”
“I'M MOST PROUD OF THE PROGRESS THAT I'VE MADE AS A RIDER AND THAT WE’VE MADE COLLECTIVELY AS A TEAM”
Bridewell had made several appearances in WorldSBK in 2008, 2010 and 2019 before returning to the paddock in 2024 as a test and replacement rider for Honda HRC; he repeated this in 2025 as well. However, Bridewell has had a breakout season in 2026, mostly finishing inside the top ten and securing two top five finishes – at Aragon in Race 1 and on home soil at Donington Park, also in Race 1.
Discussing what he’s most proud of this season, Bridewell said: “I think without a shadow of a doubt, I'm most proud of the progress that I've made as a rider and that we’ve made collectively as a team. I've always been a bit like a sponge, an open book let’s say. But me being able to adapt to the bike the way I have and as quickly as I have, that's solely down to the team, my crew chief Mick Shanley, and Ducati, just helping me to understand the bike and learn. I’d say adapting to the bike, to the WorldSBK regulations, the electronics, those have certainly been the biggest things and, with that, have come some amazing results.”
“I WOULD BE ABSOLUTELY ECSTATIC IF I COULD GET A LITTLE BIT CLOSER TO THE PODIUM”
Bridewell also expanded on what his goals are for the final four rounds of the season, saying: “I would say the main objective is to keep building. We seem to be lying somewhere around the top ten at circuits I've never been to, and then at circuits I know better, like Aragon or Donington, I can ride a bit freer and make a little bit more of a difference on the bike. As for the next tracks, I think Magny-Cours and Cremona will be potentially quite strong for us and can suit my style quite well. I went to Magny-Cours a few weeks ago on my practice bike. Jerez is another one I enjoy, but it's a very European track. Pretty much every rider on the grid knows Jerez like the back of their hand, so it's quite hard to separate the field there. And then we have Estoril, which I've never been to. As for goals, I think I would be absolutely ecstatic if I could get a little bit closer to the podium. We’ve finished top five, but we've got to be realistic. I know I'd need a bit of luck to fight for a podium. But I also need to make sure I put myself in a position to capitalise if that opportunity comes along.”
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