Bradley Ray led the race till the second last lap, when he lost the right line at Paddock Hill Bend and let Byrne overtake him. This way the Be Wiser PBM Ducati rider got his first victory in 2018 season and, in particular, the 85th win of his career and this happened after his 350th race in BSB. The 41-year-old Byrne reached this record after a smart race with no mistakes, during which he studied Ray’s strategy. The Buildbase Suzuki rider, instead, took his third podium finish in a row after the double win in Donington Park.
Bradley Ray didn’t win, but he can be happy anyway as he maintains the leadership in championship standings with 70 points. Moreover, he will start Race 2 from pole position after setting the fastest lap in the first one (45″201, new race lap record) and now he’s sure that what happened in Donington wasn’t something isolated. Third place for a convicing Jason O’Halloran, the only Honda Racing UK rider on the track after Dan Linfoot’s injury. 4th place for Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Bournemouth Kawasaki), followed by Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW by TAS) in a top-5 including five different manufacturers: Ducati, Suzuki, Honda, Kawasaki and BMW.