Scott Redding ended his 2020 season – his first ever campaign in WorldSBK – in runner-up position in the championship, 55 points behind six-time champion Jonathan Rea.

With five wins as part of his 14 podium total, Redding was the season-long potential threat to Rea, even if not every weekend worked out as Scott and his Aruba.it Ducati team had hoped.

His final weekend was a case in point, with a Superpole crash, a DNF, sixth in the Sprint race and then a now-famous second behind his outgoing team-mate and long-time friend Chaz Davies.

Well before that Redding knew he was out of contention for the big prize, and was limping after his painful Saturday fall. Legs, back and his arms took a pounding, none of which would have helped him in the Estoril races.

His team gave him the option of not riding again after the championship chance was gone, but he demurred. Redding said to them, “You clearly don’t know me. There is no way I am pulling in from this race I am going to go out and try to win this race. Pain is temporary. We will come back.”

And after all that final day pain and effort his endearing character trait of telling the truth as he sees it at all times shone through again. Praise or the opposite, Redding dishes them both out with a verbal shovel.

“I was mega-happy for Chaz, hands-down respect,” said Redding of Davies winning his final race in an official Ducati team. “I am probably more happy for him winning than my second. It was great to see him go out like that. I have a lot of time for Chaz. For him to do that… there would be a lot of guys who would say, ‘The team don’t want me next year, who cares, the championship is done.’ But he didn’t - he showed one last time what he is capable of doing and that is great to see that from him.”

Redding chose a different front tyre to most others in that final 2020 race and possibly that played a part in his second place and not a challenge for just one final win of his own.

As a rookie season, Redding’s stands up well, even with too much expectation from some quarters for the reigning BSB champion, but with his roots firmly embedded in the top-tier MotoGP classes. Others thought he had no chance, according to Scott.

“We did a good year,” Redding said of his first season in WorldSBK. “I am happy to finish second overall. It would have been better for one-step more in the end but for the first year, it was good. To finish the final day 1-2 was positive for me and all the team and we showed that we fight on for another day to be ready for another championship.”

Not every rider with a main background in MotoGP has had such a strong start in WorldSBK as Redding, and usually that level of competitive rookie rider comes as a proven MotoGP race winner.

In essence it has been a momentous couple of years or Redding since he left the blue ribbon championship he felt – when asked the question directly again - he never quite got the right opportunities in.

“You know my voice on that,” he said. “In MotoGP you have to have the best bike to do summat. I never was in that position. I did the best with what I could. Here I have a bike that can win and I show I can win. I can fight for a title in my first year.

“I went to BSB and won the championship, I won the championship and races on a bike I did not know, from a tough position. Give me the bike – I can win. That is what I have been telling people and that is a shame that during my years in MotoGP I never got that opportunity.

“I know I have the fighter instinct to arrive to the top. It is hard when you don’t because it demoralises you. Whereas here, I came from winning the championship - 90% thought I wasn’t going to win BSB – and those 90% of people said that guy does not have a chance; he can’t take it to the world level again, blah, blah, blah.

“I am here sitting second and took it to the last round. I know what I am capable of, the people close to me do, and I just want to enjoy it and keep fighting to be at the top. I think next year is the year that we have a good chance to take that away from Jonathan.

“To be that close in my first year… We had a couple of mistakes; a couple of bad rounds but that is what happens when you do not know things. You are always treading in water you do not know. I am happy, I feel confident and I look forward to 2021.”