Danny Kent eyeing 2025 BSB title push after milestone Brands Hatch win

Danny Kent finally achieved his first BSB race victory in Race 1 at the final round of 2024, something he says will help to boost his confidence going into 2025.

Kent’s victory hadn’t come out of the blue. There’d been several podiums in 2024 before it, but Kent said he just needed things to “align” for him to take the top step for the first time.

“It’s been a long year trying to chase that first win,” Kent said following Race 1 at last weekend’s final BSB round of the year.

“It’s not been through a lack of trying or hard work from me and the team that we haven’t got the win any sooner, it’s just the level of the championship this year is really good, really fast.

“Sometimes, you need everything to align for you to get your first win. I feel like, now I’ve got that off my back, my self-confidence and my self-belief is only going to grow and make me a stronger rider.”

Kent had taken his first win in his 100th start, a milestone that even he was surprised about.

“I didn’t actually know until this morning about 100 starts,” he said.

“My feeling is like I’ve done less. My first year, in 2021, I only did the first four rounds, I broke my hip in Donington.

“In 2022, I missed a few rounds with injury, then last year with the team running out of money and pulling out.

“I just feel like this year is my first full year, and this is only the second time that I’ve reached the final round.”

Putting together a complete campaign, and taking his first win, all in a first season on the McAMS Yamaha R1 fielded by the Mar-Train team means that Kent is well set to enter 2025.

“I just feel like sometimes it’s [about] being given the opportunity,” he said.

“Over the past five years it’s been [about] trying to rebuild my career and last year on the Honda I showed some glimpses of what I could possibly do, which landed me the ride with McAMS Racing for this year.

“I feel like we’ve had a good year, there’s been a few mistakes on my behalf, a few crashes, some bad luck in some races.

“But I really feel like this year has been a massive learning year for me because in the last few years I’ve not been in the position where I’ve gone into the year I’ve thought I can win races and fight at the front at every round.

“This year, I feel like my self-belief and my confidence has grown, and it’s going to help me for 2025.

“Where last year at the odd race I’d be fighting for the podium, this year we’ve turned up at a lot of rounds and I’ve been fighting for podiums and been in the fight for race victories.”

Kent reinforced that a part of his improvement in results has been about confidence, something that he thinks the milestones reached this year will also help increase for next year.

“Sometimes you need to believe in yourself, but until you’ve actually done it — sometimes you’ve got to achieve it to actually really believe it.

“So I feel like I go into 2025, just from the confidence that I’ve built this year with the team and with the good results that we’ve had this year.

“I feel like I’ve made a few mistakes, I’ve crashed out of podium contention in three races this year; if I’d have stayed in those positions we’d have come into the final round in contention for the championship.

“Next year I just need to eliminate those small mistakes and I feel like we can fight with the guys for the championship.”