Max Symonds uses EBC Brakes Racing’s GPFAX pads and X-Series floating discs
Wiltshire-based motorcycle racer, Max Symonds has been competing in the British Superbike Championship’s National Superstock category for a number of years.
The rider, who also won Castle Combe Circuit’s NG Road Racing ‘King of Combe’ race in 2025, switched from his Yamaha R1 to a Honda CBR 1000RR Fireblade last year, continuing to use this bike and its EBC Brakes Racing’s GPFAX pads and X-Series floating discs setup for the 2026 season.
Following some extensive testing at the start of the year across Europe, we next caught up with Symonds after his first race of the year – an NG Road Racing outing at Brands Hatch – ahead of his BSB season start.
Here, Symonds dominated in the Powerbike and Open classes, as you can read below in his team’s own words…
“Symonds Racing enjoyed a highly successful outing at the NG Road Racing season opener at Brands Hatch, delivering a dominant performance across both the Powerbike and Open classes.
“Max qualified on pole position in both categories, went on to win all four races he entered, and broke both class lap records including setting a new outright NG lap record at Brands Hatch Indy in the process,” his team explains.
“With the British Superbike season still a few weeks away, we decided to enter round one of the NG Road Racing championship to gain valuable track time.
“Friday’s test day was especially useful, with lots of track sessions allowing us to test new rear suspension components and a find a good direction for the season ahead.
“Saturday started with qualifying sessions for both classes, where I was able to put the bike on pole in each with some strong laps.
“Unfortunately, due to some work that needed doing on the bike between sessions, we decided to sit out the first Open race to make sure everything was 100% ready. With no championship points on the line, it made sense not to take any unnecessary risks.
“I got back out in the first Powerbike race and managed to take a lights to flag victory, setting a new lap record of 47.2 seconds along the way.”
“Sunday morning’s second Open race was a bit more of a challenge, starting from the back of the grid after missing Saturday’s race. This meant a pretty hectic start to the race as I worked my way through from 34th to the lead by lap eight. Once I hit the front I was then able to pull out a gap and take the win by a couple of seconds.
“Starting from pole again in the next Powerbike race, I made the most of the clear track ahead and really pushed on putting together a strong run of laps under my previous best. By lap 5 I had set a new lap record of 46.7 seconds – half a second quicker than the day before.
“In the final Open race of the weekend, I had a bit of a moment coming out of turn one, but was able to regroup and control the race from the front to take another win, along with a new class lap record of 47.0 seconds.
“Having achieved everything we wanted from the weekend, we decided to sit out the final Powerbike race, saving tyres and ending the weekend on a high.
“Overall, the weekend couldn’t have gone better, we made lots of progress with the bike set-up and came away with a load of wins and laps records!”
GPFAX Pads
EBC’s GPFAX Sintered Race Brake Pads are for RACE ONLY use. This is a blend of brake pad that has higher friction and far better grip than any other brake product on the market.
X-Series Floating Discs
Since their introduction, EBC’s ultra-lightweight floating motorcycle rotors have become one of the worlds best selling lightest and best performing discs available for all modern sport bikes.
