Vickers bounces back with Brands BSB Race 1 win

Ryan Vickers returned to the top of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship podium today, as he took his OMG GRILLA Yamaha R1 to a dominant pole-to-flag victory at Brands Hatch. Team-mate Kyle Ryde pushed through a few small issues to secure a solid top six.

After a promising Friday, Vickers returned to the 2.4-mile venue with a point to prove, as he began his quest to get back to winning ways and become the 2024 King of Brands, a quest that was put on halt for Saturday’s Practice 3 session due to a small technical issue. Returning to the track for Qualifying 2, Vickers laid down an early gauntlet, holding provisional pole in the early stages. A mesmerising 1:25.061 confirmed back-to-back pole positions after storming to the top spot in Snetterton a round prior.

Launching from pole, the Number 7 rider held the lead into Paddock Hill bend and instantly found his groove. A crash for Danny Kent behind left the 25-year-old clear at the front of the pack and continued to extend his lead lap-by-lap. The only rider to consistently lap in the mid 1:25’s up until lap 18, and with a comfortable nine-second lead, he brought his Yamaha R1 home 7.334 seconds clear of the field, marking his first victory since Navarra at the start of the season.

Vickers said: “A good day! It was nice to start it with a pole this morning. The team have worked hard to give me my bike back and I feel really good on it. I knew I had to go hard from the start, but I didn’t think it would happen. I managed to break away and set some really strong lap times. I saw I had 8.5 seconds in my pocket and slowed it up a bit for the last lap, enjoyed the moment and took the win. Roll on tomorrow.”

On the other side of the OMG GRILLA Yamaha garage, Kyle Ryde had his work cut out in Saturday’s morning sessions. However, as normal, the Nottinghamshire rider delivered, topping Qualifying 1 and progressing through to the second session. Having to use the same set of tyres, he secured a third-row start in eighth.

Enduring a tricky start which saw him drop to 12th on lap one, Ryde began his charge forward, working his way back up to eighth in the early stages. Kent’s crash promoted ‘Youth’ up to seventh before a last-lap pass on Leon Haslam confirmed a strong top six for the Number 77 rider.

“It was a good day all-in-all,” said Ryde. “We made progress with the bike, not enough to fight for the podium but we weren’t too far there. I’m proud of myself for digging in deep and taking a top six. It’s clear Ryan has a bit more, but I think if we can improve a few more areas we can get closer tomorrow and bring some trophies home.”

The duo returns to track action on Sunday for two more races, with Vickers starting the 12-lap Sprint Race from pole and Ryde 10th.

Words and images courtesy OMG Racing UK