Britain’s Fenton Seabright will continue his Yamaha journey in the WorldSSP300 championship for 2022 having graduated from the R3 bLU cRU European Cup.

A rollercoaster season in 2021 saw the 19-year-old finish third overall thanks to four victories - including a debut in front of his home crowd - and three further podiums alongside the trip of a lifetime to the VR46 Master Camp last summer. The highs, however, firmly contrasted against the loss of his mother at the start of the year.

“It was a very difficult start of the year for me as a rider, after losing my mother,” the youngster admitted. “Mentally, it took me a while to understand that what my mother had said to me; that my natural talent would shine through once I would get my confidence back. It was mid-season when I knew I wasn’t just riding for myself, I was riding for my mother.”

Seabright will now continue his YZF-R3 career by competing in the 300 class full-time for 2022 with the Viñales Racing team.

“Really happy to be apart of the Viñales Racing Team,” he confirmed. “I can’t thank everyone enough for their help and support to be able to make this possible. Looking forward to being in WorldSBK paddock next year.

“The Yamaha R3 bLU cRU European Cup was a great foundation for building a possible future in the Superbike World Championship,” Seabright explained. “It was not only cost effective, but also allowed us to experience different tracks around Europe, which otherwise we would not have been able to race at. In the process, the high level of competition gave us a taste of the challenges of WorldSSP300 racing.

“One of the biggest plusses I will take from the Cup would be the amount of different riding styles and knowledge from all over the world. It was great to be able to share our experiences, which I would try to use to my advantage on the various tracks and situations through a race weekend.

“Looking back, I’d like to thank everyone in the background that made it possible, all the staff within the Yamaha R3 bLU cRU European Cup and Yamaha Motor Europe. It was a difficult year, but they made it as easy as they could for me, not just as a rider, but as a person. If it weren’t for all of the mechanics, I don’t know where we would have been as my dad wouldn’t have had a clue!”