Kyle Ryde has been crowned the 2025 Bennetts British Superbike Champion, sealing the title during a dramatic season finale at Brands Hatch. The Nottinghamshire rider claimed his second successive championship crown after finishing sixth in the final race of the year, doing enough to hold off his main rival, Bradley Ray, in the points standings.
The result means Ryde becomes the first rider since Shane “Shakey” Byrne to win consecutive BSB titles — Byrne having achieved the feat in 2016 and 2017. It marks another major milestone in Ryde’s impressive rise through Britain’s premier motorcycle racing series, confirming his status as one of the country’s top Superbike talents.
A Season of Resilience and Redemption
Ryde’s title defence didn’t come easy. His team — formerly OMG Racing, now operating under the Nitrous Competitions Racing banner — nearly collapsed just before the start of pre-season testing. The uncertainty left Ryde without a confirmed ride only weeks before the first round, with the entire project saved at the eleventh hour by new backers, Nitrous Competitions. Their intervention allowed the team to regroup and join the Donington Park and Oulton Park tests, but Ryde started the year on the back foot.
Meanwhile, Bradley Ray opened the season in blistering form, dominating the early rounds and winning 10 of the first 12 races. At that stage, few expected Ryde to mount a serious title defence — but the 27-year-old stayed patient, focused, and consistent.
Mid-Season Momentum Shift
The turning point came midway through the season at the July round of Brands Hatch, where Ryde finally broke through with his first win of the campaign. From there, his confidence grew race by race. He went on a strong run through the summer, collecting five more victories and a string of podium finishes that thrust him right back into championship contention ahead of the crucial Showdown phase, which began at Assen.
Ryde’s hallmark this year wasn’t just speed but consistency. Across the entire 2025 season, he achieved 21 podium finishes and remarkably completed every race — an unbroken finishing record that ultimately proved decisive in edging out Ray for the crown.
Making History and Looking Ahead
Ryde’s sixth-place finish in the final wet race at Brands Hatch was enough to secure the championship, even as Ray tried to keep his slim title hopes alive with a runner-up finish. The result confirmed Ryde’s name among the few riders in BSB history to successfully defend the title, joining an elite group that includes Byrne, Leon Camier, and Niall Mackenzie.
Looking ahead, Ryde and the Nitrous Competitions team will return to defend their championship in 2026 — but with a major change on the horizon. After years campaigning Yamahas, the outfit will switch to Ducati machinery next season, marking Ryde’s first time back on an Italian bike since his 2021 campaign aboard a BMW. The move was officially announced at Assen earlier this year and is expected to bring fresh challenges — and opportunities — for both team and rider.
For Ryde, though, the mission remains the same: keep improving, keep winning, and keep writing his name deeper into the history books of British Superbikes.
Images BSB, Nitrous Competitions Racing
