The 2018 Bennetts British Superbike Championship kicks off on Easter weekend (March 31 – April 2) at Donington Park and the complete season entry list has been officially released with three from Kent.
A permanent field of 28 riders will line up for the opening races of the year following the first official test at Donington Park to launch the 2018 season on March 20th.
Defending champion Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne, from the Isle Of Sheppey, returns to defend his title with the Be Wiser Ducati team, but after missing out on winning his second crown by just two points last year, Australia’s Josh Brookes is ready to come out fighting after switching to the McAMS Yamaha team.
The 2018 Bennetts BSB grid features an incredible list of title contenders with 13 different race winners in the series, including last year’s Showdown Title Fighters; Leon Haslam, Jason O’Halloran, Peter Hickman and Kent’s Jake Dixon. A further three challengers have scored podium finishes meaning that the anticipation for the season is already building.
Kent’s Bradley Ray will also be on the start line in what could be another incredible season.
Last year saw the emergence of some new championship’s protagonists and 2018 is set to follow suit with six full season Bennetts BSB rookies, including Gino Rea, who joins the series after a spell in the World Moto2 Championship and Dickies British Supersport champion Tarran Mackenzie.
The young guns are also showing progression through the series with six support class champions lining up to start the season in the premier class, including Pirelli National Superstock 1000 champions Danny Buchan and Richard Cooper.
The announcement of the season entry list follows one of the closest seasons in recent history last year, when the title fight went down to the final race of the championship at Brands Hatch with Byrne emerging victorious after a heartbreaking crash for Haslam.
Last season delivered an astounding ten different race winners from the 26 races, with eight different teams celebrating victory. The most competitive season in recent years showed how intense the level of competition is in the British Championship with all of the six manufacturers represented featuring on the winning step of the podium.
Bennetts British Superbike Championship Series Director Stuart Higgs commented: “Today marks a very exciting day for Bennetts BSB. As the season rapidly approaches it is hugely exciting to reveal the new look for 2018 and beyond in association with our new title partner Bennetts but also release the official entry list of 28 permanent riders. We are also expecting a number of ‘wild-card’ entries at selected rounds to boost the grid further.
“We arrive at the opening round of the season this year off the back of one of the most memorable and fiercely-fought championships in recent times. The strength and depth of the this year’s entry together with the highest-ever class newcomer intake will make for an incredible mix. The start of the season can’t come soon enough.”
2018 ENTRY LIST
Team/Manufacturer Rider Nationality # Be Wiser Ducati Shane Byrne Great Britain 67 Be Wiser Ducati Glenn Irwin Great Britain 2 Buildbase Suzuki Richard Cooper Great Britain 47 Buildbase Suzuki Bradley Ray Great Britain 28 CF Motorsport Yamaha Kyle Ryde Great Britain 77 FS3 Racing Kawasaki Danny Buchan Great Britain 83 Gearlink Kawasaki Carl Phillips Great Britain 32 Honda Racing Dan Linfoot Great Britain 4 Honda Racing Jason O’Halloran Australia 22 JG Speedfit Kawasaki Leon Haslam Great Britain 91 JG Speedfit Kawasaki Luke Mossey Great Britain 12 McAMS Yamaha Josh Brookes Australia 25 McAMS Yamaha Tarran Mackenzie Great Britain 95 Moto Rapido Racing Ducati Taylor Mackenzie Great Britain 24 Movuno.com Halsall Racing Suzuki Tommy Bridewell Great Britain 46 OMG Racing Suzuki Gino Rea Great Britain 44 Platform Hire Yamaha Aaron Zanotti Great Britain 64 PR Racing Lloyd & Jones Bowker BMW Jakub Smrz Czech Republic 96 RAF Regular & Reserves Kawasaki Jake Dixon Great Britain 27 Ridersmotorcycles.com BMW Martin Jessopp Great Britain 40 Silicone Engineering Racing Kawasaki Dean Harrison Great Britain 5 Smiths Racing BMW Peter Hickman Great Britain 60 Smiths Racing BMW Sylvain Barrier France 20 TAG Racing Yamaha James Ellison Great Britain 11 TAG Racing Yamaha Shaun Winfield Great Britain 8 Tyco BMW Michael Laverty Great Britain 7 Tyco BMW Christian Iddon Great Britain 21 WD40 Kawasaki Mason Law Great Britain 55