Second BSB title “just a massive bonus” for Kyle Ryde
The 2025 BSB title is a “bonus” to Kyle Ryde after clinching back-to-back crowns.
The 2025 British Superbike Championship title is a "massive bonus" to Kyle Ryde, he says, as will be any further championships he wins in the future.
The 2025 and 2024 titles were won in vastly different styles, with this year's finale seeing Ryde managing a points gap whereas 2024 was decided in an iconic final race battle with Tommy Bridewell, but both saw Ryde come from behind in the first half of the season to take charge of the season in the second half.
In defeating Bradley Ray to become the 2025 BSB champion, Ryde became the first rider to defend the title since Shane Byrne in 2017, but for the Nottingham rider the title was simply a “massive bonus” after winning his first in 2024.
“This one [championship], I’m just super-happy,” Ryde told BritishSuperbike.com after Race 3 at the Brands Hatch finale.
“I only got upset when I was with mum and dad, seeing how much it means to them because they’ve put so much money and time and effort into just even getting my first one, so to get a second one is just a cherry on top.
“So, thanks to them for believing in me, all my sponsors.
“This one’s just an absolute massive bonus and any more we get will just keep going, more bonuses.”
Ryde also said that he was pleased with how he handled the situation in Race 3, where a finish inside the top-14 would win him the title, but where wet weather complicated matters.
“Just super-happy to pull through there; that [Race 3]was a difficult race, even though I had a 30-point lead – you saw how many people fell off in front of me,” he said.
“I didn’t have a knee slider on, either, so it was very difficult.”
He added: “At the start I was actually surprised, I was quite loose on the bike and had a few moments – not moments that scared me, just nice ones that were showing that you’ve got good speed in the wet. Riders will know what that means.
“But when it was eight laps to go and I saw three or four people go down, it was obviously treacherous. There wasn’t enough standing water really for the [soft compound wet rear tyre] to be able to work properly, so there was a lot of spinning up out of Druids and out the back.
“So, very difficult and adding the knee slider– I’m terrible when I can’t touch my knee on the floor in the wet, so it was a lot of curveballs chucked at me.
“At one point I thought it was going to go wrong, but once dad was shaking the pit board at me telling me I’ve got a massive gap to where I needed to finish I relaxed a little bit.
“Anyone that was behind me – I think Max [Cook] was behind me, probably could of passed me, but he stayed behind. So, to people like that, thanks!”
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