A Beginner’s Guide to British Superbikes Betting

British Superbike Championships

The British Superbike Championships were launched in 1988, the original format using 750cc engines according to the TT Formula I regulations. These were changed from 1993, to the Superbike regulations. For licensing reasons the name of the sport was also changed to the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, or the BSB for short.

The main season comprises a number of events, from April to October, and tracks that are used in this series include Thruxton Circuit, Cadwell Park, Donington Park and the famed Silverstone Circuit. The difference here between BSB and MotoGP is that the BSB bikes are not purpose-built race machines but rather bikes that could be available to the public. This has proven to win sympathy with fans of motor racing as they have the chance to buy the same models in the market. This is where the phrase “Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday” came from. These bikes can have up to 1000cc, reaching speeds of up to 200 mph.

The racing championship runs with a score system, whereby points are distributed amongst the first 15 finishers, from winner to 15th place, in the following format: 25-20-16-13-11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.

At the end of the main season, there is a Superbike Showdown, where the top eight riders in the standings will graduate into Title contenders and be given 1000 points together along with any Podium points that they won during the season. The podium points are given at each race in the main season in the following format: from first place to third, 5-3-1.

The following 3 events will have the same rules as the main season, each with 3 races. The top 8 will look to win the prestigious Title Championship, and the rest of the riders will compete to win the BSB Riders cup.

There are 32 riders, in 16 two-bike teams, those who have competed for multiple seasons are invited to participate but those who are new have to buy entries.

Each circuit has up to 20 laps depending on the length; and three races. The point tally from these races are added to the campaigns standings, as the bikers battle it out elbow to elbow.

Types of Bets

When you look at betting on a British Superbikes race, you will see that there are several different betting markets. Here we will explain the most popular of them.

Moneyline

Moneylines are bets on which rider you think will win. These are by far the most popular, as your only goal is that your rider finishes the race in first place. Depending on bike build and the riders’ history on the track, odds will vary for all racers, these are set by machines that calculate the probability of the rider coming in at first place.

Top Winners

If betting on race winners may be too risky, you have the option to choose from the top winners format, there will be top 6 or top 10, these may vary, but the idea is that you bet on a rider to finish in one of the top places. The odds will be considerably lower than a moneyline bet, but you can make several bets that when multiplied yield the same value as that of a moneyline but with less risk. Take, for example, a race where you have two riders who are both capable of winning and you cannot decide which one you think will be the winner, if you bet on both to fall into top 4, then you have a much higher probability than betting on one over the other.

Handicap Betting

When betting on a rider, you can choose to have a handicap, this is the margin in points by which you think the motorist will win. You can choose to have a handicap of -10, this is deducted from his point tally at the end of the event, so he should be at least 11 points in front of the other riders for you to win. Handicap betting is indubitably rewarding but it can be risky, especially with higher handicaps, you would be kicking yourself if you bet on a handicap of -9 and then the rider only won by 9 points. We advise you to bet with handicaps when you have a stronger understanding of the sport and can distinguish when one rider has a big advantage.

Rider Match-ups

These bets are on the performance of individual motorcyclists, you can even bet on two from the same team. You can bet on the amount of points they win or on which rider will finish higher in individual races. These can be exciting if there are some rivalries between two racers, as you will see them trying to get the edge over the other, you just need to hope you fall on the right side of it. Match-ups are not only limited to riders, you will also have the opportunity to match-up teams against each other.

Rider Totals

Totals are when you bet on how many points you think the riders, or teams, will tally at the end of the race. There will be an over/under bet, where the line is drawn at the number of points the individual or team is predicted to finish with.

Say you have a team who, by track record and form, look like they will only finish each race at the 15th or 16th place, making 1 or 2 points each, the bet may look like this: over/under 2.5 - this number is exactly how much they are predicted to make. However, these odds will usually veer more favourably to either over or under, you will not find them at 50 50.

Outrights

When looking at an entire season, you may want to bet on an outright winner right from the start. This is possible thanks to the Outright bets, where odds are weighed before the season starts. It is useful to check out how the riders perform at test events, and get an idea of who has the potential to be a title contender.

Live Bets

There is nothing more exciting than live betting, you get to see the races and you might pick up something, maybe just a hunch, that one of the motorists is going to use some of that explosive acceleration and win. A lot of these races are about showing up on the right day, and even the very best can be beaten by an underdog who picks his bends perfectly and chooses the right time to blast forwards. With live betting you can receive odds that are constantly updating, to match the riders’ performance during the day, so it is vital to try and pick up all the signs as early as you can.

Conclusion

Now that you have learnt about the rules and the different kinds of bets you can place on British Superbikes, the only thing left to do is to go and check them out for yourself!

The sounds of the motors gliding across the circuit is enough to pump you full of adrenaline and follow them as they go round. At mr.play Sports you can view calendars of when the next events are happening and where you can find them, be sure not to miss the Superbike Showdown where the best of the best face off for their podium points.