BSB 2022 : Let the Showdown begin

After eight frenetic and fiercely competitive rounds, it’s now time for the business end of the British Superbike Championship with the three-round, nine race Showdown getting underway at Oulton Park this weekend – let battle commence!

Ray has momentum

After a few years in the doldrums, his only victories coming in 2018, few would have put Bradley Ray down as a championship contender in 2022. An outsider, maybe, but not a contender. However, his season has been nothing short of superb.

Strong at the BSB opening round, when he took a brace of podiums, he’s carried that momentum with him ever since and, indeed, with four wins in the last six races, he’s in the ascendancy as the Showdown begins.

Bradley Ray Image Credit Ian Hopgood Photography

With 19 podiums in 24 races, he’s only had one DNF and the consistency is a major tick in the box for both Ray and his Rich Energy OMG Racing team. They’ve taken full advantage of the Yamaha R1’s strengths and capabilities and eked the maximum out of it every weekend. And, of course, eked the most out of himself.

There’ll need to keep doing that at the final three rounds because, as we’ve seen before, the fastest rider and the one leading the championship coming into the Showdown isn’t necessarily the one who wins the title.

Retaining the title

If Ray has momentum, so too does reigning champion Tarran Mackenzie. Injuries may have prevented him from competing at the first two rounds, and meant he was far from fit at the next two, but since then he’s been back to his best.

With the exception of Cadwell Park, which has always been his bogey circuit, the McAMS Yamaha rider has been challenging for the win in each and every race and he has every intention of retaining the title he won last year.

Tarran Mackenzie Image Credit Impact Images Photography

Since July, he’s racked up three wins, five seconds and a third and that means he goes into the Showdown with 31 podium points and third in the title race. He’s still 30 points adrift of Ray, but he’s hitting form at the right time and the Showdown format has certainly played into his hands.

The Showdown was also where he came into his own last year, seizing control of the title race at exactly the right time, and with the final three rounds being at the same circuits, he’ll be confident of a repeat performance although he knows he’ll need to beat Ray on a regular basis and/or hope for a rare DNF from his fellow Yamaha rider.

Faltering challenge?

This time last year, all the smart money on who would become BSB champion was on Mackenzie’s team-mate Jason O’Halloran with the Australian putting together a faultless season ahead of the Showdown.

However, it all unravelled at the final three rounds and although we’re not at that stage yet, his championship challenge this time around, which looked so strong up until recently, is again in danger of running out of steam.

Jason O’Halloran Image Credit Impact Images Photography

From rounds three to six, O’Halloran was on fire with 12 straight podium finishes, which included seven wins and that helped him surge clear in the standings. However, he hasn’t stood on the podium in the six races since with only two top six finishes in that time. So, is his challenge faltering?

Of course, only time will tell but he hasn’t looked like winning in those six races encountering machine issues that were absent in the early season although he’ll be hoping his dip in form is out of the way now and he can reassert himself in the Showdown. Oulton Park has, of late, been one of his happy hunting grounds and he’ll need it to be again this weekend if he’s to get his desire of becoming BSB champion back on track.