Bradley Ray has confirmed he will remain with Raceways Yamaha for the 2026 British Superbike Championship season, ending rumours that he was in line for a return to WorldSBK with BMW.

The 2023 BSB Champion returned to the national series in 2025 after a difficult couple of seasons on the world stage competing on privateer Yamaha machinery.

Getting straight back up to speed, Ray reeled off a remarkable ten wins from the opening 12 rounds to put himself in a commanding position in the overall standings. However, a run of indifferent form recently has seen momentum in the title race shift back to fellow Yamaha rider and former team-mate Kyle Ryde.

Nevertheless, Ray remains well in contention for a second career BSB title with three events remaining and has now - ahead of this weekend’s overseas Dutch event in Assen - confirmed he will be back to contest the 2026 campaign with Raceways.

“I’m happy to be returning with Raceways Yamaha for another year, the dynamic in the garage has been great from the start, and my feeling aboard the Yamaha R1 continues to build every time I swing my leg over it,” he said. 

“It’s been a strong year for us so far and I’m confident we have more to showcase throughout the remainder of the season and in the next.

“I feel really grateful to Steve for the opportunity to go again next year, where I’m confident we’ll be able to achieve more of the same. For now, though, we’ll focus on the fight for the championship. Nine races left, we’ll make the most of them and aim to come out on top!” 

The announcement also serves to cement the commitment of Raceways Yamaha team, which made a surprise eleventh hour return to BSB this year after OMG Racing - whom Ray was originally signed with - was forced to drop him following the loss of financial backing.

Despite the late deal, Raceways - the force behind the title-winning McAMS Yamaha team that won 46 BSB races between 2017 and 2023, including the 2021 BSB title - says the success with Ray has inspired it to continue on in 2026.

“We’re thrilled to be returning with Brad for another year,” said team owner Steve Rodgers. “He and the team have gelled so well since the start of the season, and the results we’ve been able to achieve speak for themselves. As a team, I believe we have even more to give.

“The determination, speed and confidence have been there all year – we have a great group of people under the stable and I’m sure that we have what it takes to put up a strong fight for the 2025 championship title. 

“From here, we’ll dig in, focus on the fight ahead, and come out swinging throughout the remaining three rounds – hoping to end the year on a high note and carry momentum into 2026.”

BSB deals nixes talk of WorldSBK return for Ray

Ray’s decision to re-sign with Raceways Yamaha puts rumours of a return to WorldSBK firmly to bed.

The Briton had emerged as a leading name amid paddock speculation over who would replace Toprak Razgatlioglu and Michael van der Mark at the factory ROKiT BMW Motorrad WorldSBK team for 2026.

Having already signed Danilo Petrucci to replace MotoGP-bound Razgatlioglu, the jury was still out on who would succeed van der Mark, who has gone on the record as stating he won’t be racing in WorldSBK next season.

With this in mind, Ray had been strongly rumoured over the summer break, even if talk has died down in recent weeks.

Attention now turns to who else could be in line for the plum seat with names including KTM MotoGP test rider Pol Espargaro and Honda WorldSBK exile Xavi Vierge, as well as soon to be ex-Pramac Yamaha MotoGP rider Miguel Oliveira, considered to be in the frame.