The riders to look out for on a bumper 2022 BSB grid… but where is PBM?

It won’t be long now until the 2022 motorcycle racing season blasts off with the opening round of the MotoGP World Championship in Qatar, but for those who prefer their wheel-to-wheel action closer to home then pound-for-pound the British Superbike Championship (BSB) certainly holds it own by comparison.

Indeed, the domestic series is never short on thrills and spills among a pack of esteemed trusted hands, wily underdogs and precocious youngsters cutting their teeth but even by BSB standards the 2022 season is certainly bursting at the seams.

The opening round at Silverstone might still be two months away but a confirmed 31 riders already take pride of place on the entry list, with more names to potentially follow in the coming weeks.

So who are they and who will be the riders to watch out for…?

Yamaha

Tarran Mackenzie will proudly brandish the #1 plate on his McAMS Yamaha in 2022 as he looks to become the first rider since Shane Byrne in 2017 to defend his BSB title.

A maiden success for the Scot in 2021 - 25 years after his father Niall Mackenize score the first of his three BSB titles - while Tarran had designs on the WorldSBK Championship, his extended stay in BSB will be dovetailed by at least three wildcard outings on the international stage this year before a planned full-time switch in 2023.

Staying in BSB is no consolation prize though with Mackenzie keen to pursue a more direct route to a title glory after getting a fortuitous assist to the crown courtesy of the Title Showdown format in 2021.

The same couldn’t be said for Mackenzie’s team-mate Jason O’Halloran however, the Australian blowing the competition away with 11 wins prior to the Showdown, only for a run of poor form to scupper his title aspirations when it mattered.

Nevertheless, the Aussie comes back hungrier than ever to complete unfinished business and pinch that plate from his McAMS Yamaha counterpart in what will be his 11th season in BSB.

Elsewhere, Rich Energy OMG Racing starts work with a new manufacturer for the third time in four seasons after ditching its BMW supply in favour of the Yamaha R1s that won 21 races in 2021.

Still looking to reach the Title Showdown for the first time - having come agonisingly close with Bradley Ray last season - the bespectacled 24-year old will remain with the team for its Yamaha switch, with Kyle Ryde alongside him once again.

Ducati

For a machine that won the BSB title in 2019 and 2020, not to mention runner-up in the hands of Tommy Bridewell in 2021, it is rather surprising to see just a single Ducati Panigale V4 R confirmed to the grid as of writing.

That entry belongs to the aforementioned Bridewell, who enters into his fourth season with the Oxford Products Racing team looking to go one better after a career-best performance last year.

As for the factory-assisted Paul Bird Motorsport team, it’s been very quiet over at the Cumbrian team amid talk it is trying to source a title sponsor to replace VisionTrack. Josh Brookes has already intimated he is staying with the team, while 2013 WorldSBK Champion Tom Sykes has been heavily rumoured, though to date remains unconfirmed with any team.

Could PBM be on the BSB grid at all in 2022?

BMW

BMW is - as ever - well represented on the bulging 2022 BSB grid with nine M 1000 RRs across five teams hitting the grid this year.

Once more it will be the Synetiq TAS Racing outfit that gets works support from BMW Motorrad as it looks to build on a promising 2021 campaign that saw it return to the top of the podium en route to the Title Showdown with Danny Buchan. He will once again be joined by Andrew Irwin in an unchanged rider line-up.

Both, however, will be looking to get the edge over fan favourite Peter Hickman, who picked up with new team FHO Racing where he left off with Smiths Racing by booking a fourth trip to the Showdown en route to fifth in the overall standings.

Joining him will be youngster Ryan Vickers, who will no doubt be hoping he can string some impressive bursts of performance together into results after an inconsistent initiation into the BSB with Lee Hardy Kawasaki.

iForce PR Racing swells to three entries for 2022 with experienced hand Dan Linfoot leading its challenge, joined by rookies Fraser Rogers and Dan Jones, the latter earning his BSB opportunity after impressing in a trial during pre-season training to be bumped up from SSTK.

Another rider stepping up from SSTK this season, 2020 champion Chrissy Rouse renews ties with the Crowe Performance outfit he won that championship with to make the return to the ‘big bike’ class, while Sam Cox has been chosen to represent NP Motorcycles 

Honda

Honda toasts 30 years of the Fireblade with a special white, red and blue livery that will be quadrupled across its official team for 2022.

An unchanged trio of Glenn Irwin, plus Ryo Mizuno and Takumi Takahashi - the Japanese duo no doubt hoping for better fortune this year after a tough introduction to BSB life in 2021 - will be joined by Honda’s SSTK champion Tom Neave, who makes the long awaited full-time step into the premier class.

TAG Racing continues with Honda satellite status, Luke Mossey getting a full season after a one-off outing at the 2021 season finale yielded a surprise pole position. Luke Hopkins will also be back on this grid aboard his Black Onyx Security Fireblade.

Kawasaki

Having missed out on a Title Showdown berth in 2021, Kawasaki will be desperate to claw its way back into the upper echelons of BSB this year.

The works backed FS-3 Racing won’t be hard to miss in its resplendent green, blue and white livery with consistent Riders’ Cup champ Lee Jackson and impressive youngster Rory Skinner sticking around for another season together.

In terms of Kawasaki representation, however, all eyes will be on Lee Hardy Racing after it succeeded in luring Leon Haslam back to BSB from WorldSBK for 2022. The dominant title winner during his last BSB stint in 2018, Haslam brings a wealth of experience that makes him a cast-iron contender with the team that pushed him hardest en route to that championship win with Jake Dixon four years ago.

Elsewhere, Storm Stacey gets a third season in BSB with the LKQ Euro Car Parts outfit - despite his tender 18 years of age - while Rapid CDH Racing expands to two entries for the retained Josh Owens and newcomer Liam Delves.

Finally, TT front runner Dean Harrison will be back on the grid for 2022 aboard the Dao Racing ZX-10RR he will also campaign on the roads this year.

Suzuki

The evergreen Suzuki GSX-R1000R is still going strong in the hands of Buildbase (Hawk Racing) after adding another two wins to the sportsbike’s victory tally in 2021.

For 2022 it boasts arguably its strongest rider line-up for some time with 2021 title contender Christian Iddon switching over from PBM Ducati, while Danny Kent was demonstrating last year that he was an adept hand on a superbike before a crash and hip injury mid-season scuppered his progress.

Hawk Racing will also be involved in two more Suzuki entries this season with its test rider Leon Jeacock debuting with the Specsavers Suzuki outfit, while Powerslide/Catfoss Racing retains Bjorn Estment and takes on James Ellison as team manager this time around.