Ryan Vickers was “fairly surprised” to be in podium contention at the Thruxton BSB, before coming away with two wins.

Vickers and Honda had endured a tough start to the 2026 BSB season, with no podiums from the first six rounds as rider and team battled through technical challenges, most visibly a vibration issue that was most clearly highlighted at Snetterton.

More recently there had been signs of progress, with good speed shown at Oulton Park and some apparent improvement in tyre life, but it took until the 19th race of the season – Race 1 at Thruxton – for Vickers to take his first rostrum of the season.

Vickers followed that up with two wins on Sunday, his first since 2024, but even the third place on Saturday came as a surprise to him.

“I was fairly surprised with our performance in Race 1, to be honest,” said Vickers.

“I came here not completely convinced we had the pace to deliver. 

“The boys put a solid bike under me and I was able to race it to the podium. It felt like a real reward for all of us, and it had a positive impact on today.

“I woke up having slept on that podium performance and carried fresh confidence into Race 2. 

“I had a plan, I knew where and when I wanted to make my moves and I executed that plan.

“The result was a win and I couldn’t be happier for everyone in the team to share that with. 

“The final race was absolutely incredible. I feel like I’ve been a sitting duck all year but today was the first time I felt able to get in a strong position and then race to defend it. I had to use a lot of racecraft as well as knowledge of this place to deliver and, thanks to the team putting a great bike under me, I was able to deliver the goods. 

“I lost a [knee] slider along the way, but it didn’t hold me back.

“What’s better than heading into the last chicane in a four bike slipstream for the lead, and then being able to make moves for the win rather than watch from the back? I absolutely loved that.”