Ryan Vickers emerged as the star of the show on day two of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch, showcasing blistering pace in both qualifying and the race.
The day began with a surprising twist in Q1, as Kyle Ryde topped the session with a 1:25.602, narrowly edging out Franco Bourne. However, it was Vickers who would have the last laugh when it mattered most.
As the lights went out for Race 1, Vickers, aboard his OMG GRILLA Yamaha, shot off the line from pole position and never looked back. The 24-year-old rider put in a masterclass performance, leading from start to finish and setting the fastest lap of the race with a blistering 1:25.167.
Vickers crossed the line 0.378 seconds ahead of Tommy Bridewell on the Honda Racing UK machine, with Andrew Irwin completing the podium, making it a fantastic day for Honda with two bikes in the top three.
The battle for the remaining podium spots was intense, with less than half a second covering the top five finishers. Glenn Irwin and Christian Iddon rounded out the top five, both on Ducatis, emphasizing the competitive nature of the field.
Notable performances came from Max Cook, who climbed from 19th on the grid to finish 13th, and Luke Hedger, who improved from 18th to 14th.
In the Pirelli National Superstock class, Lewis Rollo put in an impressive performance on his Aprilia, finishing as the highest-placed Superstock rider in 18th overall and setting the fastest lap for his class with a 1:26.538.
As the dust settles on an action-packed Race 1, all eyes now turn to tomorrow’s two races. With Vickers in such dominant form, his rivals will need to dig deep if they hope to challenge for victory on Sunday.
Top 5 Race 1 Results:
- Ryan Vickers (Yamaha) – 28:38.129
- Tommy Bridewell (Honda) – +0.378
- Andrew Irwin (Honda) – +0.396
- Glenn Irwin (Ducati) – +0.394
- Christian Iddon (Ducati) – +0.390
With his commanding performance today, Vickers has thrown down the gauntlet to his competitors. Tomorrow’s races promise to be thrilling as the rest of the field looks to respond to today’s dominant display.
