BSB Snetterton: Bradley Ray beats Tarran Mackenzie to take race two victory

Bradley Ray made a last lap move on Tarran Mackenzie to secure his second Bennetts British Superbike Championship victory of the weekend at Snetterton.

The Rich Energy OMG Racing Yamaha rider followed the reigning champion for the majority of the race, before getting in Mackenzie’s slipstream down the Bentley Straight. Ray went down the inside at Brundle, and held position through Nelson.

It’s Ray’s sixth victory of the year and he pulls even further ahead of his rivals in the title fight. He now has 56 podium credits, whilst Jason O’Halloran stays on 48 after crossing the line in ninth.

Mackenzie’s spot in the Showdown is now secured and the McAMS Yamaha rider now has 30 podium credits ahead of the three-round championship shootout.

Tommy Bridewell bounced back from his race one retirement in third place, securing his own spot inside the Showdown as a result. It’s Bridewell’s sixth podium of the 2022 season, but he’s still searching for his first victory of the season.

Glenn Irwin finished fourth onboard the Honda Fireblade, whilst Peter Hickman completed the top five for FHO Racing BMW. Despite the positive result, Hickman can no longer qualify for the Showdown.

Kyle Ryde secured his Showdown place in sixth, finishing just ahead of his nearest challenger for the final Showdown position, Danny Buchan. O’Halloran was ninth, whilst Tom Sykes completed the top 10 for MCE Ducati.

Rory Skinner fought through from the back of the grid to take 11^th ahead of Josh Brookes. Meanwhile, Storm Stacey, Tom Neave and Ryo Mizuno secured the final points on offer in race two.

Danny Kent crashed heading into Montreal on the opening lap and hit Takumi Takahashi as a result, with the pair both out of the race.

Two laps later, Andrew Irwin ran in too deep at the same corner, clipped the back of O’Halloran and crashed out of fourth place.

Christian Iddon retired from the race with a bike issue on lap five, whilst Leon Jeacock and Josh Owens both returned to the pits to retire at the end of the same lap. Dean Harrison retired at the end of lap seven.

Leon Haslam’s race came to an end on lap 11 with a bike issue. He’d ran off the circuit earlier in the race and was running down in 16^th when he retired. Haslam can no longer make the Showdown.

Chrissy Rouse failed to make the start of the race.

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BSB Snetterton: Bradley Ray dominates race one to take podium credit advantage

First published: 10 September 2022 by Josh Close

Bradley Ray dominated the opening Bennetts British Superbike Championship race at Snetterton to extend his championship lead and take control in the podium credits standings.

Ray took the lead away from Rich Energy OMG Racing Yamaha teammate Kyle Ryde in the early stages and was untouchable for the remainder of the race. Ray was around a second a lap faster than the field at one stage.

The championship leader now holds a 34-point over Jason O’Halloran who, after qualifying 17^th, came across the line in 12^th.  More importantly, Ray now has more podium credits (51) than the Aussie (48) as well.

Tarran Mackenzie fought his way through the field after a slow start to finish second to boost his Showdown hopes. The McAMS Yamaha rider showcased impressive late-race pace and was one of only two riders to dip into the 1:47s.

The reigning champion has a 42-point lead over ninth-placed Danny Buchan in the championship standings, with only 50 points available tomorrow.

Ryde completed the podium to make it a Yamaha one-two-three. It’s a much-needed result for Ryde, who hasn’t been on the podium since winning race one at Donington Park in May.

His case has been helped further following a collision involving Showdown-chasing Buchan, Ryan Vickers and Josh Owens on the opening lap at Agostini. Ryde holds a 30-point advantage over the SYNETIQ BMW rider. Vickers has been diagnosed with a concussion and will take no further part this weekend.

Polesitter Christian Iddon finished fourth on the Buildbase Suzuki, whilst Leon Haslam fought back from 19^th on the grid to finish fifth.

Lee Jackson confirmed his place in the Showdown with sixth, crossing the line ahead of MCE Ducati’s Tom Sykes. Peter Hickman was eighth, whilst Glenn Irwin also sealed his spot inside the Showdown in ninth. Danny Kent completed the top 10.

Takumi Takahashi pipped O’Halloran to line to finish 11^th, whilst Josh Brookes (13^th), Tom Neave (14^th) and Storm Stacey (15^th) secured the final points available today.

Tommy Bridewell pulled up with a bike problem whilst running in second place, whilst Andrew Irwin crashed out of a top six position after running on at Nelson. Dean Harrison retired from the race on lap six.

Meanwhile, Rory Skinner was declared unfit following a highside during qualifying on Saturday morning. The Scot was suffering from neck pain and will need to undergo a medical assessment on Sunday morning in order to race.

Prior to the race, the BSB paddock came together to observe two minutes of silence and pay tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. This was followed by the playing of the National Anthem, whilst the start of the warm-up lap was signified by the lowering of the Union Jack flag.

Out of respect, there was no podium presentation following the conclusion of the race. Instead, a simple trophy handover took place, followed by an interview with each of the three podium finishers.