Richard Cooper returns to the MCE British Superbike championship in 2018 alongside Bradley Ray as the pair form Buildbase Suzuki’s rider line-up, while Bဣilly McConnell will contest the Pirelli National Superstock 100 series for the team.

Cooper narrowly missed out on the Superstock 1000 crown this season to Dꦉanny Buchan and as a former BSB podium finisher he makes a comebac🦩k to the premier class next to the standout rookie of this season Ray.

After “a bitter pill” of moving back to Superstock this year, Cooper accepts it could be a move which heꦦ benefits from in 2018 thanks to a year of development with the new Suzuki GSX-R1000 and is relish👍ing his return to BSB.

“I'm so excited to be a full time BSB rider again, it was a bitter pill to sw🅘allow for me moving back into Superstock this year but looking at the se♛ason, we had with the new Suzuki GSXR100 and the position I'm in now, you could say it was a good move,” Cooper said. “The team now have a year’s development behind the bike and even when they weren’t getting the results they deserved early in the season I knew how much potential was in the bike which showed at the end of the year.

“I was lucky enough to do the final two ☂rounds of BSB so I've got a very good idea where the bike is compared to the otherꦛ bike's on track. I know teaming up with Brad Ray we can deliver results, I have 5 BSB podiums to my name and I fully intend to make that more in 2018.”

After impre🅰ssing with the second-string Suzuki squad, Ray has graduated to the official squad and is keen to build ❀upon his impressive rookie campaign in BSB.

“I’m really happy to be re-signing for Suzuki, and stepping up to the official team,” Ray said. “Last season was obviously my first year on a superbike and it was a learning year for me, but we improved every time we went out and by the end of th෴e year we could chall✅enge for the top six regularly and also finished on the podium.

“With a year of experience under my belt and also a year of development comp💙lete f💙or the team with the new GSX-R1000, I’m already looking forward to 2018, and the aim has got to be to keep improving and fight for the Showdown.”