Kent’s Bradley Ray fulfilled a life long dream on Saturday afternoon at Brands Hatch as he became Bennetts British Superbike Champion for the first time.

The rider from Lydd only had to finish seventh or above in the opening race of the weekend to take the title.

After starting sixth on the grid, Ray moved into fourth place on the opening lap of the race, and it was a position that he maintained for the vast majority of the race.

With a couple of laps to go Tommy Bridewell nipped past and Ray settled into fifth place and brought home his OMG Racing Yamaha to take the title.

It means the pressure is off for Sunday’s two races, he can go out and enjoy the final two races of the 2022 season.

Speaking after winning the title, Ray said: “It wasn’t easy let me tell you! I approached the start of the race as I would any other – I dug in at the start and tried to get as far up the field as possible. I started having a few small moments and a few slides, and to be honest I settled in and then into fourth and tried to catch Andy and Pete, but I couldn’t do it, so I was happy to sit where I needed to. I had to just carry on doing what I was doing.

“When Tommy passed me, I was fifth, so I knew that I’d be safe for the last few laps because seventh was what I needed. I wanted to get more, but I had to bring it home for the championship. I’m a little bit speechless but I’m sure it’ll sink in tonight over a nice glass of vino. I’m super proud.

“It’s super special, it’s something I used to dream of as a kid, becoming British champion. This is the closest I’ve ever been to doing it, so we had to dig in into the Showdown and do everything we could to be close enough coming into Brands Hatch.

“It was nice to come here with such a lead and it took a bit of pressure of my shoulders to perform, but it means the world to me to my close family, my close friends it’s a dream come true.

“I’m excited about tomorrow now; I will be going for the wins. The pressure is off so we’ll just go out, have fun and enjoy it.”