Lee Johnston started his British Supersport Championship season in dominant fashion, winning both races at Silverstone to take an early lead in the series.

The Fermanagh rider did not win any of the races of his 2022 campaign, but climbed to the top step of the podium at the first opportunity in this year in the Sprint race, and then repeated that success in the feature race at the opening weekend of racing.

Johnston made the ideal start to the season when he grabbed pole position on his Ashcourt Racing Yamaha, setting a lap time around the Silverstone track 0.287 seconds quicker than closest rival, Luke Stapleford.

Off the start line in the Sprint race, the 34-year-old got the jump on Stapleford and surged into an early lead.

The race quickly developed into a two-way scrap between the pair, but Johnston held the upper hand throughout, fending off several overtaking attempts from Stapleford to take the chequered flag with 0.2 seconds to spare.

In Sunday’s feature race Johnston was again quickly off the line to take the lead into the first corner.

He maintained his advantage over the early laps, but a hard-charging Rhys Irwin put increasing pressure on the Fermanagh man, closing onto his rear wheel on lap six.

Irwin made a dive past Johnston on lap eight and held the advantage for two laps, but Johnston stayed in touch and went back past the Suzuki, reclaiming the lead as the battled continued with neither rider able to open up a significant advantage.

The battle raged between the Yamaha and the Suzuki right up until the finish line, but it was Johnston who prevailed, crossing the finishing line a mere 0.062 seconds ahead.

Johnston’s perfect weekend earned him a 12-point advantage in the early British Supersport Championship standings, but despite his success he remains unlikely to commit fully to the series, given his road racing commitments.

The North West 200 and the TT Races are Johnston’s number-one priority and that is likely to remain the case, regardless of his track success.