Category: IOM TT - Manx Grand Prix

1. Peter Hickman targets Isle of Man TT Races after pulling out of North West 200

   Posted on 9:37am Monday 11th May 2015

   Peter Hickman and the Briggs Equipment BMW team are targeting the Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy after withdrawing from the North West 200 as a result of his injuries sustained in a crash at Oulton Park on Saturday.

   Having sustained two broken ribs in the 150mph spill on the approach to Druids, the 27-year old has subsequently been diagnosed with two breaks of the C4 vertebrae in his neck meaning both he and the team will be unable to participate in the first International road race of the season, which gets underway on Tuesday 12th May.

   The Louth-based rider enjoyed an excellent debut at the event 12 months ago, comfortably being the best performing newcomer and also recording the fastest ever lap by a circuit debutante and both he and the team are bitterly disappointed at being unable to return. However, the nature of his injuries mean it simply isn't possible to ride and the aim now is to be fully fit for the Isle of Man TT Races which commence on Saturday May 30th.

   Lee Hardy, Team Owner:
   "It's deeply disappointing for Peter and everyone connected with the team that we'll be unable to take part in the North West 200 but his injuries from the crash on Saturday are a little bit worse than we first thought."

   "The goal now is to support Peter as best as we can and ensure he gets the best possible medical support with the aim of being ready for the TT. He needs to get as much rest and recuperation as he can and the final decision will ultimately lie with his surgeon but we're very hopeful of being ready for practice week at the Isle of Man. I'd also like to publicly thank the on-site medical team at Oulton Park for all their excellent treatment and support given to Peter after his accident."

   Hickman enjoyed a sensational debut at the TT in 2014, finishing as the fastest ever newcomer in the event's history beating Josh Brookes outright fastest lap by a newcomer with 129.104 in the last lap of the 2014 PokerStars Senior TT which saw him finish in 11th place.

2. Isle of Man TT Mountain Course Tribute for Geoff Duke

   Posted on 9:00am Saturday 9th May 2015

   Geoff Duke's final lap of the TT will take place this weekend, ahead of a private family funeral next week.

   Geoff, who won seven races on the Mountain Course in a stellar career that included six World Champion titles, passed away on the 1st of May at the age of 92. A hearse carrying his coffin willdepart the Grandstand at 2.30pm on Sunday (10th May) to complete a final tour of the circuit where he made his name, and gave so many fans such pleasure with his successes.

   David Cretney MLC, a former MGP competitor, will wave the flag to start the hearse on its journey. Geoff's sons, Peter and Mike, will follow on motorbikes while other family members will join the lap in cars.

   The family would welcome any fans who would like to pay their last respects to Geoff to join them for the lap*.

   Speaking ahead of the procession Geoff's eldest son Peter said 'Mike and I think dad would have really appreciated a last run around the course. It's not going to be 10mph cortege, we'll stick to the speed limits but we're going to open it up a bit over the Mountain. Dad would definitely have liked that.' Peter added 'Anyone who wants to come and join us for the ride will be made welcome. It's not exclusively for bikes; Dad was as handy in a car as he was on two-wheels so if it's got wheels, bring it along!'

   Geoff's TT victories, first for Norton and later Gilera, helped to secure his place as a household name in the 1950s, becoming the first true superstar of motorcycle racing. Reflecting the importance of Geoff's place in post-war motorsport, national newspapers including the London Times, Daily Telegraph and The Guardian have all carried obituaries.

   Further afield Fox Sports and CycleWorld in America, and Australian, Italian, German, Spanish and French newspapers, magazines and websites have carried tributes to 'The Duke'.

   Spectators at the MotoGP round at Jerez paid tribute to the former champion during a minutes silence last Sunday, and TV coverage of the event showed a special film showing some of Geoff's career highlights. A further obituary with tributes from son Peter will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4's 'Last Word' programme at 4.00pm on Friday (8th May).

   Locally, Manx Radio will air a special tribute programme featuring archive audio of an interview conducted by the 'Voice of the TT' Geoff Cannell from 1987

   The Manx Radio tribute will be available to listen again on Manx Radio's website for a week after broadcast.

   Douglas Borough Council have also confirmed that flags on buildings in the town will be lowered to half-mast on the day of the funeral. Geoff was awarded the freedom of the borough in 2003.

   Geoff's family have asked that any donations in Geoff's memory are made to the TT Riders Association, c/o Frances Thorp, Mountain View, Glen Maye, IM5 3BJ

3. RST CONFIRMS LINE UP OF STARS FOR TT MOUNTAIN COURSE PARADE LAP

   Posted on 9:44am Saturday 2nd May 2015

   Some of the greatest names in road racing history will be joined on the TT Mountain Course by some of the UK's leading circuit racers in the RST Parade lap, which will take place ahead of/ following the RST Superbike Race on Saturday 6th June 2015.

   RST, the official safety partner of the 2015 Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy, has brought together some of their best riders including TT race winners, British Superbike and World Superbike Race winners

   Leading the way will be BSB and WSB racer Chris 'Stalker' Walker, four time BSB runner up and World Superbike race winner, will also be appearing. Walker, who currently rides for Tommy Hill's 'Be Wiser' Kawasaki team, will be riding the stunning new Kawasaki H2R, one of the most revered bikes in motorcycling.

   Scotland's Niall MacKenzie, triple BSB champion in the mid-'90s also enjoyed a successful 250 and 500cc career at World Championship level, which included 6 podium finishes and a highest championship place of fourth in 1990 riding for the Lucky Strike Suzuki outfit.

   Fellow Scot Ian Simpson, who enjoyed success on both the roads and circuits, is another famous RST rider who will be appearing in the parade. Simpson came to prominence in the Supercup 600 championship in 1991 but he will forever be associated with his 1994 Superbike campaign on the Duckhams Crighton Norton. He also enjoyed three TT wins with victory in the 1997 Junior and a Senior and F1 double the following year.

   James Whitham, instantly recognisable as the face of ITV4 TT coverage, will be swapping his microphone for a bike and taking to the TT course again. Whitham made his Mountain Course debut in the 1985 Manx Grand Prix. His career highlights included finishing runner up in his only BSB season in 1996, winning ten races and a five-year WSB campaign that included six podiums.

   James's fellow TV commentator Steve Plater will also be joining the line up. Plater, the 2009 British Supersport champion, is probably best known for his TT exploits. After becoming the fastest ever newcomer in 2007, a record that stood for 6 years until Josh Brookes broke it in 2013, Plater won the 2008 Supersport race and crowned his successful career with victory and a race record in the 2009 Blue Riband Senior TT.

   Ian Hutchinson followed Steve Plater onto the top step of the Senior TT the following year. Hutchinson's victory crowned the perfect week as it came after victory in all four preceding races. The Bingley Bullet will be appearing in the parade lap alongside the man who previously held the record for most wins in a week - four - Phillip McCallen, whose 11 outright TT wins place him 5th on the overall winners list. Hutchinson's appearance will be particularly noteworthy, as he will be riding Paul Bird's MotoGP Aprilia.

   Other TT race winners include Cameron Donald, who will be appearing on the Norton Domi Racer. Donald has three TT wins to his name including his double in 2008. The Australian will be riding for Norton in this year's RST Superbike and PokerStars Senior and will also be representing Valvoline Racing by Padgetts Motorcycles in the two Monster Energy Supersport Races.

   Gary Johnson, who has secured strong rides at this year's races with Mar Train Yamaha in the Supersport class and GB Moto Kawasaki for the Superbike, RL360 Superstock and PokerStars Senior TT, will be hoping to add to his two TT titles this year while Lee Johnston, who secured his maiden Mountain Course win with victory in the 2014 Motorsport Merchandise 350 aboard an MV Agusta, is another RST ambassador who will be appearing in the parade lap.

   Other current TT riders due to participate include reigning TT privateer champion Ivan Lintin, Kent based racer Steve Mercer and MCN's Adam Child, who has competed in the Lightweight and Supersport classes. Jonny Towers, MD of RST distributors Moto Direct will also be joining the parade. Towers is no stranger to the TT Mountain Course having competed in the 1987 production TT Race.

4. Positive test for Honda Racing ahead of the North West 200

   Posted on 12:05pm Friday 1st May 2015

    Honda Racing riders John McGuinness and Conor Cummins completed a two-day test at Castle Combe, Wiltshire yesterday in preparation for the forthcoming 2015 North West 200, which will take place in Northern Ireland 10-16 May.

   The first day of the test saw the team complete a full day on track, while overnight rain and intermittent showers on Wednesday morning meant McGuinness and Cummins were only able to get out in the afternoon on their Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP machines.

   The outing has proved positive for both riders who were testing various Dunlop tyre compounds, trying different electronic settings and fine-tuning the suspension with the K-Tech engineers who were on-hand.

   The Castle Combe test was the second time McGuinness has ridden the CBR this year, following a test in March at Monteblanco in Spain. The 21-time TT winner is feeling confident and fit ahead of the North West and also this year’s Isle of Man TT races after suffering a wrist injury last year, which affected both events for the ‘Morecambe Missile'.

   Team-mate Cummins is in his second year with the Honda Racing squad and had a successful debut with the team in 2014, scoring three Superbike podiums in total with one at the North West and two at the TT. The Manx-man leaves the test confident and looking forward the races ahead.

   The North West 200 takes place in two weeks time from 10-16 May, with McGuinness and Cummins competing for Honda Racing in the two Superbike races on Saturday 16 May. Forming a triangle between the Northern Irish costal towns of Coleraine, Portrush and Portstewart, the 8.970-mile course is one of the world’s fastest.

   John McGuinness

   It's been a really solid test at Castle Combe over the two-days. I’m really happy, motivated and looking forward to the next two months, which will be busy for us all with the North West 200 and also the Isle of Man TT. The whole package is awesome with the bike, the team and also my team-mate. My wrist is feeling good and I’m feeling bike fit and strong. Both of the pre-season tests have been positive and I just can’t wait to be on my bike again for the races.

   Conor Cummins

   We've worked hard and on a lot of different settings over the two days. We tried a different electronics package on the bike, which is different to last year and required some hard work and lots of laps. It's been really productive and worthwhile and I'm happy with the direction we have and can work towards now. The best thing about this year is the amount of time on-track we've had on the CBR and I can't wait to get to the North West now.

5. DAN SAYLE HAS IMPRESSIVE FIRST RUN OUT WITH JOHN HOLDEN

   Posted on 12:49pm Monday 27th Apr 2015

   Dan Sayle has had an impressive first run out with John Holden with the pair teaming up to win both races in the opening round of the ACU/FSRA F2 British Championship round at Oulton Park at the weekend. The victories took Holden to 40 wins Dan now has three - his first since winning with Nick Crowe in 2007.

   The pair will team up again at this year's Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy with Dan returning to the sidecar paddock after a year's absence. The Sulby man will passenger for John Holden after Holden's regular passenger Andrew Winkle withdrew with a suspected broken hand in an incident during the previous World Championship round at Donnington Park.

   Sayle has won TT Races with Tim Reeves, Dave Molyneux and Klaus Klaffenbock. His eighth victory came when he teamed up with Tim Reeves in 2013, which made him the joint most successful passenger in history, joining Rick Long on eight victories.

   John Holden became the oldest first time TT race winner in the event's history when he won in 2011 at the age of 54 and the Lancashire based racer's Silicone Engineering/Barnes Racing outfit will again be one of the team's to beat with Sayle on board. Holden took two podium places at the 2014 meeting.

   Sayle made his debut in 2002 and took his first podium a year later, partnering Greg Lambert. His first victory came in 2004 when he teamed up with fellow Manxman Dave Molyneux. He also has two victories from the Manx Grand Prix as a solo competitor.

   Commenting on his return to the paddock Dan said:

   "I've got a huge amount of respect for John and his record at the TT and I think that together we can have a good go at this year's races. I'm really looking forward to getting back in the sidecar around the Mountain Course and I think we'll be one of the teams to beat. It was good to get a run together at Oulton Park and I already feel that John and I are gelling as a team."

   This year's Sure Sidecar races boast the largest field for ten years with 70 entries confirmed to start including seven former race winners.