Ray Takes Positives After Difficult Grand Prix Debut At Silverstone

Lydd’s Bradley Ray had a tough wildcard weekend at his home Grand Prix at Silverstone, suffering three crashes throughout the three days. 

Friday’s free practice sessions went well for the 18 year old, who worked hard with his team to improve the setup of the FTR Moto2.   Front-end grip was a reoccurring issue, but in the afternoon session he improved in time by 1.5 seconds, posting a 2:10.8, only 2.8 seconds behind the fastest man in the session Sam Lowes.

Saturday would be the turning point for Ray, when in FP3 a crash on his out lap meant the team had to work extra hard with limited resources to rebuild the bike. They did an excellent job and Brad made it back out for the final five minutes of the session.

Qualifying proved even harder for the unfazed Ray, and on his third lap he lost the front end again and, with quick repairs not possible this time, he missed the rest of the session meaning he would have to start fom the back of the grid for the race on Sunday. The team had to work around the clock to have a bike ready for race day.

Come Sunday the weather took a turn for the worse, and saw all the teams setting their bikes to cope with the wet conditions. With no previous data for wet setting on the bike for Ray it was pretty much guess work to find the best setup.   They must have been close though with Ray ending the morning warm up session in 23^rd place.

When the lights went out for the start of the race, Ray got a great leap and after the first lap he made up five places and ran in 26^th place, chasing down the pack ahead on a fast drying track.

At the start of lap three, as the Kent man headed into turn one he lost the rear end and it spat him over the bars, cutting his Grand Prix debut short.   Luckily he was able to walk away uninjured.

After the race a disappointed Ray said: “The weekend got off to a great start and I was feeling more comfortable on the bike every lap. We had a few issues with the feeling of the front end, but I rode around it and worked hard overnight to find more with the setup.

“Saturday didn’t go to plan at all with a crash in FP3 on my out lap, the bike was a mess but the team worked so hard and got me back out there for the final few minutes of the session. Qualifying didn’t go any better after I lost the front again on lap three, but the team worked so hard to get the feeling back but it was hard with the lack of track time we have had.

“Race day was tricky with the weather conditions we ended up on wet tyres on a drying track. I got a great start and by lap two I had made my way into 26^th, but as I entered turn one and tipped in with no brake or throttle the rear just came round and spat me over the bars. It’s not a great end to the weekend.

“I just can’t thank my team members enough, they worked so hard during the weekend. My family, friends, and many others who have helped me get this far and make the wildcard possible. I’m sorry for the disappointing ending.”

Successful FTR Moto2 Testing Programme Completed For Ray Ahead Of British Grand Prix

Last week saw the final test of three for Lydd’s Bradley Ray at Silverstone, ahead of his debut Grand Prix appearance at the end of August.

Ray had tested the FTR Moto2 at Donington Park and the Snetterton 300 circuit, working on the setup of the bike, meaning the final test would be fine tuning the suspension and setup of the British based chassis.

He worked hard all day with his mechanics and posted some very good lap times in traffic, due to the heavy numbers in attendance on the track day, courtesy of No Limits Tracktime.

Brad improved each session in time and with the feeling of the machine, meaning the he is ready for next weekend, where he will make his grand prix debut.

At the end of the day a delighted Ray said: “We’ve had a very positive test at Silverstone ready for the GP in two weeks. Every session we were getting faster and I felt more comfortable on the bike, and we also made a few changes to the suspension on both the front and the rear, which were very positive.

“For the GP we will have data logging so we can see where we are at with the suspension, which will be very helpful. I’m hoping to do the lunch hour at a track day there next week, so we can get some vital track time on my own so I can push harder to get a proper feel for the bike.

“Once again, a massive thanks to Steve Bones, Mark Keen, Roger and all my family for making this possible. Also a big thanks needs to go to No Limits for allowing us the track time, you guys really have been helpful.”

Words: Michael Burton
Photos: Bonnie Lane