BSB: Scott Redding special “coach” to Rabat and Sykes at Thruxton

One of the most interesting aspects of this weekend’s BSB round at Thruxton is definitely the presence of Tito Rabat, who is making his debut in the national series aboard the TAG Racing team’s Honda CBR1000RR-R. The 2014 Moto2 world champion takes the place of Luke Mossey, who has in turn moved to BMW in PR Racing colours.

A different kind of weekend for Scott Redding

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The very fast track, constructed on what was a Royal Air Force airfield, will host a number of special guests this weekend, not least Scott Redding, on hand to support Rabat and friend Tom Sykes. The factory BMW rider, who was British champion in 2019, scored a podium on his first appearance at this circuit and can definitely provide the two biggest names on the grid with some useful advice.

This is Tito’s very first BSB round and he will need to build the right confidence with the specific British Superbike technical regulation. Sykes, on the other hand, returns to a track he’s not raced at for more than ten years. The Englishman can also count on the same bike that Redding used, considering that he’s competing for the Paul Bird Motorsport team on the Ducati Panigale V4 R.

The race schedule

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Despite Redding’s support, Rabat and Sykes will have their work cut out as they take on some very stiff competition, starting with Tarran Mackenzie who, having returned to winning ways at Brands Hatch, seems ready to defend his 2021 title. And then there’s O'Halloran as well as “usual suspects” Haslam, Ray and Brookes, with Skinner ready to shine after recently making a positive debut in Moto2.

As usual, three races will run over the course of the weekend, the first, the Sprint Race, kicking off on Saturday at 15:40 local time, before Race 2 and Race 3 get underway on Sunday at 13:30 and 16:30 respectively.

Translated by Heather Watson

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