The OMG GRILLA Yamaha team are excited to return to action this weekend as the Bennetts British Superbike Championship bursts back to life with two days of pre-season test action at Donington Park.

It’s been a busy, but hugely exciting, off-season for the Cannock-based outfit, who welcomed hydration company GRILLA onboard as title partner as the 2022 Champions prepare to tackle their first season as the official Yamaha Motor UK Superbike team in 2024.

With a testing ban in place this season, Kyle Ryde has ensured he remains bike fit, spinning laps in Spain aboard his R6, and is more motivated than ever to get to work on fine-tuning his R1 at Donington Park, a local venue for the Nottingham-based rider. Team-mate Ryan Vickers is equally as excited to build on a strong debut season with the team in 2023.

And there’s no better place to kick off the 2024 action than Donington Park; the East Midlands venue holds special memories for the Yamaha R1, and in particular, the OMG Racing UK team with both Ryde and Vickers achieving race wins at Donington last year.

The opening test of the season gets underway on Saturday 6th April and will conclude on Sunday 7th before the team gears up for the season start at Navarra in Northern Spain.

Kyle Ryde

“I can’t wait to get back on my R1 this weekend at Donington Park and begin the work towards this year’s Bennetts British Superbike Championship. The team have been hard at work this winter to make sure our package is as strong as possible, so I’m confident going into the first test that we can make progress to put ourselves in a good position before the Navarra test and then the opening round. I’m feeling good about myself and my fitness. I’ve done a lot of riding in Spain on my R6 to stay bike fit and to keep sharp, but nothing compares to jumping on the Superbike, so I’m relishing that feeling this weekend!”

Ryan Vickers

“I can’t wait to get 2024 going at Donington Park this weekend! It’s been a long off-season, I last sat on my Superbike six-months ago at Brands Hatch which held some special memories, so I’m excited to get back aboard the R1. The team have worked incredibly hard over the winter break and have found a lot of benefits which we can use to further improve our package in the engine and chassis department, so we have a lot of things to try but it should be positive! Let’s get started!”

Alan Gardner – Team Owner

“It’s always nice to get started again after the off-season, especially one that’s been as long as this one! We’ve had an exciting winter announcing new partners and especially confirming our title partnership with GRILLA Hydration. The OMG GRILLA Yamaha R1 looks stunning; the whole team have worked hard on getting everything ready and I’m eager to see how things go at Donington Park and be ready for round one in Navarra.”

Paul Curran – Team Principal

“Everyone is ready to get the season started because no one really likes the off-season! It’s been a long but busy winter for everyone at OMG GRILLA Yamaha Racing and we’re really looking forward to getting the season started, our first as the official Yamaha Motor UK Bennetts British Superbike team. Both Kyle and Ryan have worked hard over the winter so I’m looking forward to seeing how they and the R1 go.”