Third “the best job” Bradley Ray could do in “tough” 2026 BSB season
Bradley Ray third in the 2026 BSB standings was the “best job” he could do in a season made “difficult with the Ducatis”.
Bradley Ray ended the 2026 BSB season third in the riders’ standings – the “best job” he could do this year as Ducati dominated.
Ray won only twice in 2026 after taking 12 victories last season, and dropped from second in the standings to third.
The downturn in results came as Ducati introduced its new Panigale V4 R, which won 25 of the 33 races, all of those taken by either eventual champion Kyle Ryde and runner-up Scott Redding.
The Ducati’s performance this year has prompted performance-balancing rule changes for BSB 2027 that will see rider aids reintroduced and power capped at 210bhp for all manufacturers.
It’s also been the cause of Bradley Ray’s lack of success compared to 2025 when he was on the same bike, the McAMS Yamaha rider feels.
“It’s been a tough season,” Ray told Crash.net after the final race of the season at Brands Hatch.
“Overall it’s been difficult with the Ducatis, but we’ve fought really hard and it’s nice to give these boys a third place at the end of the year.
“Obviously, 33 races in the year, we’ve done the best job we could overall, and then to take third is always nice. Obviously, we’re not taking the win, but it’s good for Yamaha and for Steve [Rogers].”
The final race saw Ray finish down in 14th as he struggled with grip in the cold, wet conditions.
“We had similar settings to what we had in in Brands last year but I think the temperature was up,” he said.
“So, today for some reason just didn’t have anything to fight with grip-wise. It was a bit strange.
“But brought it home. Nothing to shout home about, but Race 2 was good with the second place, secured third in the championship and just wanted to bring it home for the boys in that one.”
That second place in Race 2 marked a step forwards compared not only to Race 1 on the same weekend, but the summer round at Brands Hatch in July when Ray when 8-4-8 across the three races.
“A big step,” Ray declared. “Just trying a few different things with the bike, trying to understand how we can improve in certain areas.
“I think we’ve found something in [Race 2] today which gave me something to fight with.
“It’s all about collecting data, understanding more, and hopefully making 2027 better.”
Alex joined the Crash.net team in August of 2024 having covered consumer and racing motorcycle news at Visordown for two years.
