Oulton BSB: Race one win for Ray as Mackenzie, O’Halloran crash

After dominating qualifying, Bradley Ray duly converted that form into a race win with a commanding victory on the Rich Energy OMG Racing Yamaha in the opening Bennetts British Superbike Championship race at Oulton Park.

Ray took the lead on lap two and was never headed, pulling away in the second half of the race to comfortably take the victory ahead of Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Products Ducati) and Leon Haslam (Vision Track Kawasaki). But it was disaster for McAMS Yamaha with Jason O’Halloran, running in third, being clipped by Peter Hickman (FHO Racing BMW) and crashing out spectacularly with two corners to go, two laps after reigning champion Tarran Mackenzie had crashed out of fifth. O’Halloran led into Old Hall Corner to take the lead on the opening lap from Bridewell and Ray before Bridewell hit the front at Shell Oils Corner but Ray got by them both before the end of the lap and he led Bridewell, O’Halloran, Hickman, Haslam and Danny Buchan (Synetiq BMW) at the completion of the first 2.69 miles. Second time around and Ray had extended his lead to 0.370s but Title Fighters Glenn Irwin (Honda Racing), Lee Jackson (Cheshire Mouldings FS-3 Kawasaki) and Ray’s team-mate Kyle Ryde were all up against it, circulating in 10th-12th whilst Mackenzie and Skinner on the second FS-3 machine were just ahead of them in ninth and eighth respectively. The front four soon began to edge away and at the start of lap four just over half a second covered Ray, Bridewell, O’Halloran and Hickman with fifth placed Haslam now a second further back as he fought off the close challenge of Buchan. O’Halloran slipped up the inside of Bridewell at Old Hall at the start of lap six as the leading four riders continued to circulate nose to tall and