BSB: Brookes completes PBM dream team

Josh Brookes will join Scott Redding in a Be Wiser PBM Ducati dream team for the 2019 Bennetts British Superbike Championship.

The 2015 champion moves from the McAMS Yamaha squad to line-up next to the former MotoGP star in Paul Bird’s camp next season as he looks to return to the top step after a challenging year.  

Following a stunning 2017 campaign with the private, family-run Anvil Hire TAG Yamaha team which saw him finish second in the championship, many expected Brookes to return to the dominant form seen in 2015 upon returning to a factory-backed Yamaha project this year. However, despite flashes of that dominance at Brands Hatch and Thruxton, an inconsistent end to the year thwarted any chance of a title fight for the Aussie.

“This year wasn’t the year we wanted,” Brookes told MCN. “It certainly didn’t materialise how we hoped it would, so it didn’t make sense to carry on. It was time for change, for both me and the team – they need to look at what they are doing and I needed to re-think what I’m doing.”

That need for change saw Brookes turn to the most successful team in the BSB paddock, which hasn’t previously been an option for the Aussie due to their long-standing relationship with six-time champion Shane Byrne – someone who Brookes hasn’t seen eye to eye with over the years. 

“In all the years I’ve been in BSB, PBM have always been able to put together a consistently good package and challenge at the front. The door has never been open for a conversation there because Shakey has been such a secure part of their line-up for so long. This year that opening became available, so it seemed like a good opportunity to see what we can do together.

Read Brookes’ first, full interview about joining PBM in this week’s MCN.