BSB - 2026

[anonymous-user]

As 2025 has come to an end, we can start to look forward to 2026.
Riders confirmed so far
PBM - Redding
Nitrous OMG - Ryde and G Irwin
Raceways Yamaha - Ray
Sencat yamaha - Iddon
DAO Honda - Jackson & Brookes
Honda UK Vickers and O Halloran
Superbike Advocates - Bridewell
TAG Honda - Rogers & Nesbitt
FS3 Bimota - Max Cook & Joe Talbot

A few things spring to mind for next season
Bridewell reckoned that Honda had taken the package as far as they could this season, so it will be interesting to see if Vickers can do any better with the bike and whilst i make no secret of the fact i'm a TB fan, i'm also not blind and it makes for an interesting question if Vickers is regularly at the front/winning races. Is it him that makes the difference or have Honda found something? Be interesting to see.
Also, can't help thinking this might be a jump too far for Ryde with Nitrous OMG moving to Ducati, i know it's THE bike at World level but at BSB level? I'm not so sure and he's had all of his success so far on the Yamaha so is this a step in the wrong direction?

If the teams running Ducati's can get them up to speed fast, then next season could well be the Ducati Cup what with Redding, Ryde, Irwin, Haslam, Bridewell and potentially Skinner if TAS stay with the Ducati, all fighting at the front.

With the news that O Halloran is coming back and joining Honda, that will be a very strong pairing IF they can make the Honda work with the control tyre.

Edited by anonymous-user on Wednesday 12th November 09:40

Edited by anonymous-user on Wednesday 12th November 09:41

Edited by anonymous-user on Wednesday 12th November 09:42

Edited by anonymous-user on Thursday 13th November 09:10

[anonymous-user]

Oooooh Bridewell might well regret binning Honda off it that is the case, the 2024 Honda was a beast and if not for his off at Oulton he would have won the title on that bike.
Add Vickers and O Show on it and i expect them to be serious front runners.
Shaping up to be a massive season.

Edited by anonymous-user on Wednesday 12th November 17:11

[anonymous-user]

PorkInsider said:

slopes said:

Oooooh Bridewell might well regret binning Honda off it that is the case, the 2024 Honda was a beast and if not for his off at Oulton he would have won the title on that bike.

If Ryde didn't have his off at the first visit to Oulton that season, he'd have beaten Bridewell by more points.

True but Bridewell caught him up over the season as he had more issues during the year than Ryde did but it's all semantics, Ryde won the title...just....and went on to win again this year. I still say the battle with Tommy made Kyle the rider he is these last two years, before 2024 he was good but just lacked that last little bit, the battle with Tommy pushed him over the line and he is now arguably the man to beat as evidenced by his campaign this year.

[anonymous-user]

2ndclasscitizen said:

Have to assume O'Halloran in BSB is part of an EWC campaign.

Not according to the press release, his statement was that he achieved his main goal - to be world champion - now he wants to add a BSB title to that list.

Yes i suspect Skinner will stay with TAS but i think going from the Ducati to the R1 could be a backwards step. No word on what Hawk are doing yet but i think Nesbitt is moving on and McPhee hardly had a stellar season last year.

[anonymous-user]

PorkInsider said:

slopes said:

PorkInsider said:

slopes said:

Oooooh Bridewell might well regret binning Honda off it that is the case, the 2024 Honda was a beast and if not for his off at Oulton he would have won the title on that bike.

If Ryde didn't have his off at the first visit to Oulton that season, he'd have beaten Bridewell by more points.

True but Bridewell caught him up over the season as he had more issues during the year than Ryde did but it's all semantics, Ryde won the title...just....and went on to win again this year. I still say the battle with Tommy made Kyle the rider he is these last two years, before 2024 he was good but just lacked that last little bit, the battle with Tommy pushed him over the line and he is now arguably the man to beat as evidenced by his campaign this year.

I know you're a TB fan but I think you're giving him far too much credit; he's not even in the same league as Ray, Ryde, Reading, et al, in my opinion.

I think we'll have to agree to disagree

Not at all,his first year on the Honda was outrageous, he didn't get the best start and hauled himself into title contention. But last year he couldn't make the tyre work on the Honda even though some could.
I might be a fan but i'm not blind, when he is on his game he is as good as anyone but he has to have everything just so, otherwise he is in the fight but inconsistent, whereas last year and especially this year,Ryde has been Mr Consistent and that is why he is a double BSB Champion and Tommy isn't.

[anonymous-user]

Nesbitt confirmed at TAG Honda for 2026

[anonymous-user]

I think so yes, i think the handling of the bike will allow the riders to give it everything

TwinKam - i have emailed you as requested

[anonymous-user]

One wonders if Hawk are going to carry out the rumoured switch back to Suzuki and that is why Spud Nesbitt has moved across to Tag Honda. Clearly he likes the Honda and has gone really well on it, so if the Hawk team are looking to move to a different make, it would make sense for him to stay on the bike he knows and likes.

Soon find out i guess

[anonymous-user]

And the Yamaha won't be getting any new development, Japan have stopped doing updates for the bike so it is one of the last bikes on the circuit not to get any major updates, whereas all the others are either new or getting regular updates from the factories.
See also the Kawasaki, which is why FS-3 have struggled this season to an extent -see also WSBK - but hopefully the new Bimota will provide them a few years of being able to update regularly and keep them in the fight.
It's got the potential to be a vintage season

[anonymous-user]

PorkInsider said:

Rob 131 Sport said:

It should be a great season with no stand out clear favourite. If I had to predict a champion it would be Scott Redding.

I'd likely predict Redding, too.

Having said that, Ray will be on a familiar bike and given his dominance in the early part of 2025, if the new Ducati takes a bit of getting to grips with he could be away before anyone else gets chance to make a bid for the title.

It's going to be great with O'Halloran back in the mix too.

I'm not so sure about Ray, he took off at the start of this season but then let it slip away from him, whereas Ryde just kept plugging away and was Mr Consistent all season long, credit where it is due he put together a great season to become champ again.

Tommy is wildcarding at the first 3 rounds of WSBK so they might well have a good handle on set up by the time BSB starts, Redding is not a bad shout as he has continuity from last season if the team can get a handle on set up early, Honda could well be onto a good season with two very strong riders and then you have DAO racing with the same team as last year.

The wildcards will be OMG Nitrous, it will all depend upon when they get their bikes as to how fast they can get them set up.

It's too difficult top predict a champion just yet for me, Ray and Redding have to be right up there with maybe Haslam and Bridewell - by virtue of getting three rounds of racing under his belt as a wildcard before BSB kicks off - there or thereabouts for the first 2 rounds, by that point everyone else will start catching up and the end of the season will be interesting.

[anonymous-user]

McAms sticking to Brad Ray in Superbikes but have added Harry Truelive and Ben Currie in Supersport on the R9

[anonymous-user]

John D. said:

trevalvole said:

John D. said:

trevalvole said:

PorkInsider said:

It's going to be great with O'Halloran back in the mix too.

Will he be prepared to take the risks that the younger guys do in BSB-length races?

He's younger than Iddon and Haslam, so I'd say he'll be just fine.

May be - I don't recall him doing that well in 2024 and was wondering whether he might be on the down-slope of his career?

He did alright considering he was riding a Kawasaki. Think he won at Donington, and probably went well at Thruxton.

Plus being World Endurance Champion at his first attempt suggest he will do alright if the Honda deals with the new tyre better than it did last year.

You have to wonder though, does O Show have visions of Taz and their hiccup at silverstone going through his head

[anonymous-user]

Stapleford reported as leaving his Triumph team, replacement for Ben Currie at Wilf Moore’s team?

[anonymous-user]

Tam_Mullen said:

slopes said:

Stapleford reported as leaving his Triumph team, replacement for Ben Currie at Wilf Moore s team?

Absolutely not going with Wilf, they re not doing SSP in 2026

[anonymous-user]

Curious that Tommy Bridewell has posted pictures of himself with his new bike on Instagram.
I get the point about the difference in systems between the two but the three WSBK rounds will at least give him a head start on setting the bike up ready for the start of the season. Granted, those on bikes they already know or who have set up data from 2025 will be ahead of the curve.

[anonymous-user]

Opapayer said:

trevalvole said:

Could you explain this a bit more, please? I'd have thought Portimao has some things in common with Brands GP and Philip Island with Donnington. Certainly, they seem to have more in common than the likes of Misano, or most of the Tilke tracks.

There are no words to describe how up and down and all over the place Portimao is. It s like no other track. It s also hugely wide. Brands has a few gentle slopes in comparison, little run off and is much much narrower.

Donington is very stop start in comparison to Philip Island which is much faster and ballsy IMO. It s also anti-clockwise to Donington s clockwise layout.

Both of the international circuits hosts MotoGP and have the highest level of licence grade A for that. Donington and Brands Hatch don t.

There really is little comparison. What Bridewell will gain is competitive seat time and maybe a bit around getting his best seating position, he won t learn much if anything else that will transfer to his BSB spec bike.

I get all of that but i still say it will give him a head start, he'll know how it reacts so he won't be starting from scratch so to speak. Granted compared to the likes of Moto Rapido or PBM, then they are behind the curve but Nitrous OMG are in the same boat.
It's going to be an interesting season that is for sure and those who have data from last year and continuity on the bike, will have a massive head start on the others but especially the Ducati and Bimota teams

[anonymous-user]

Opapayer said:

trevalvole said:

Yes, the loop at Donington is stop-start, but I'm not sure about the rest of it, in particular the greater Craner Curves section, which also seems quite ballsy to me too.

Craner Curves is a great bit of track but bears no relation to anywhere at Phillip Island which is what was being suggested. My point (and Graeme s who is very well placed to pass comment) was that as a whole the three tracks he s riding aren t like the tracks he ll be riding in the U.K.

There s also the Foggy Esses and Goddards which are very stop / start and most of the other corners aren t flowing fast ones. They need a fair bit of braking before.

I got both points of view and i understood both if your remarks and what i was trying to say, and most likely failing miserably, was that even if he won’t be on the same spec of bike, at least he will have a head start on understanding how it reacts, how he wants it set up etc.
As you both correctly stated, it won’t be the same as at the BSB tests but it gives him a head start

[anonymous-user]

Looks like Danny Kent has hung his leathers up for now, he is now Stanford Racing's Moto4 team manager

[anonymous-user]

ouninpohja said:

slopes said:

Looks like Danny Kent has hung his leathers up for now, he is now Stanford Racing's Moto4 team manager

Wrong Danny, I think your talking about Danny Webb

Yes i’m pretty sure the original one i saw said Danny Kent but you are correct.

Now isn’t there a corner around here somewhere i have to go sit in

[anonymous-user]

bergclimber34 said:

Some rumors about this new Ducati team being a but dodge, who saw that coming, remember the white Ducatis!!!

Doesn't surprise me in the slightest, be a shame if it turns out to be a house of cards, Tommy is a top rider and deserves better IF that is the case.