Source: Supplied.

Buildbase Suzuki’s Bradley Ray has commenced his 2018 Bennetts British Superbike Championship (BSB) campaign with a stellar double-race victory at the weekend’s season opening round hosted by Donington Park.

In race one, Ray put on an incredible display to secure victory, edging out BeWiser Ducati Racing Team’s Shayne Byrne by just 0.383s, while Anvil Hire Tag Yamaha’s James Ellison finished a further 0.338s behind in third.

Honda Racing’s Dan Linfoot and JG Speedlift Kawasaki’s Luke Mossey wound up fourth and fifth respectively, while Australians Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing) and Josh Brookes (McAMS Yamaha) concluded the outing in seventh and 12th positions. Countryman David Johnson (Gulf BMW) finished up in 22nd.

Race two saw Ray soar to the front once again in challenging conditions, this time taking out a staggering 3.450s win over Leon Haslam (JG Speedlift Kawasaki), stamping his authority in the division.

Closing out the top three was Linfoot in a distant third, as Danny Buchan (FS-3 Racing Kawasaki) and Byrne completed the top five in positions four and five. O’Halloran and Brookes claimed ninth and 11th respectively, as Johnson improved for 18th in his final display of the weekend.

In the Supersport category, Aussie Benjamin Currie (Gearlink Kawasaki) also put on a dominant display, taking home victory in both races throughout the weekend.

Integro Yamaha’s Jack Kennedy was credited the runner-up position behind Currie in both outings, while Ross Twyman (EHA Racing) and Tom Oliver (SGR Racing) each claimed third in the sprint and feature races respectively.

Of the Australian contenders, Sam Clarke (Morello Racing Kawasaki) and Brayden Elliott (Mission Racing) lodged DNF-15 and DNS-28 scorecards in the Superstock 1000 division, as Levi Day (Boast Plumbing Ducati) charged to a 1-15 results sheet in the Ducati Trioptions Cup.

The next round of the British Superbike Championship is scheduled for 13-15 April at the highly-regarded Brands Hatch Indy circuit.

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