Category: IOM TT - Manx Grand Prix

1. Keith Amor adds Monster Energy Supersport Races to TT comeback plans

   Posted on 7:52am Tuesday 28th Jan 2014

   Scottish ace Keith Amor will continue his racing comeback at the 2014 Isle of Man TT fuelled by Monster Energy, with rides in both of the Monster Energy Supersport Races.

   Amor, who recently announced his return to the sport as part of Ryan Farquhar's KMR Kawasaki team for the bikesocial.co.uk Lightweight TT, will ride the Site Sealants B&W Racing Honda CBR600RR in both of the 4-lap races.

   The Falkirk rider, who now bases himself in Cyprus, has always excelled in the ultra-competitive Supersport class with four of his five TT podiums coming in the 600cc Races, with his first in 2008 in what was just his second appearance on the Mountain Course. Further rostrums were taken in 2009, 2010 and 2011. He also set the fastest lap of the opening Supersport Race in 2010 with a lap of 126.909mph, making him the seventh fastest rider ever on a 600cc machine.

   In his five previous years of TT competition, between 2007 and 2011, Amor took no less than 13 top ten finishes and won 14 silver replicas. His fifth TT podium came in the Superstock Race of 2009 and he is currently the 12th fastest rider of all time with his lap of 130.177mph set in the 2011 PokerStars Senior TT Race.

   The team will be run by Amor's former mechanic, Brian Hull, who, more recently, has been backing Irish youngster David Haire in the Irish Short Circuit Championships to great effect, the combination winning the Supersport title in 2012 and 2013 and taking second and third in the Superbike series in 2012 and 2013 respectively.

   Speaking about the news, Keith Amor commented: "Brian offered me the chance to ride in the Supersport Races, which have always been my favourite class and I just couldn't say no. I've enjoyed the best days of my career on a Supersport bike at the TT and I am confident that I can still give a good account of myself. I'm working hard on my fitness at the moment and looking to get my weight down to the sort of level it was the last time I raced there, which I think is going to be critical on the smaller bikes."

   "At this moment in time, I don't have any plans to race in the 1000cc Races, and I am currently working on a programme with Ryan Farquhar and Brian of what races and testing I will be doing in the build up to the TT."

   Tickets are now on sale and selling fast for the 2014 TT Races. Glencrutchery Road Grandstand race day tickets are sold out but there are still TT Fan Zone Grandstand tickets available at Ballacrye, Creg Ny Baa and Nobles Park during practice and race days. Grandstand tickets are also available by purchasing VIP or Platinum Hospitality tickets. All tickets are available from www.iomtt.com or by phoning 00 44 (0)1624 640000.

2. GP ace Danny Webb to make Isle of Man TT Races Debut with KMR Kawasakii

   Posted on 9:10am Thursday 23rd Jan 2014

   GP ace Danny Webb to make Isle of Man TT Races Debut with KMR Kawasaki

   Danny Webb, one of the UK’s leading 125cc Grand Prix and Moto 3 contenders, will make his real road racing debut at the 2014 Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy, riding for KMR Kawasaki.

   The Kent youngster will contest the Dainese Superbike, RL360º Superstock, bikesocial.co.uk Lightweight and PokerStars Senior TT Races and will benefit from the expert Mountain Course knowledge and support of KMR team manager and owner Ryan Farquhar.

   The 22-year old has long been considered one of the countries brightest prospects, a claim supported by his seven years of Grand Prix level competition. He achieved an impressive twenty top-ten finishes in the 125cc and Moto 3 divisions, arguably one of the most competitive classes in motorcycle racing.

   Riding for the highly experienced Molenaar/De Graaf, Andalucia Cajasol and Ambrogio Racing teams, Webb achieved a best finish of fifth at the 2008 Portuguese GP, with his best Championship standing coming in the 2010 season when he took 10th overall with 93 points.

   Having led races on a number of occasions, Webb was also chosen to spearhead the Indian manufacturer Mahindra’s first ever assault on the GP trail in 2011. Indeed, he gave them first ever pole position at the Valencia GP.

   The Tunbridge Wells rider hails from a racing family with father Jimmy enjoying a successful career as a sidecar passenger and his elder brother James was a front runner in both the Virgin Mobile R6 Cup and British Supersport Championships, competing in the latter as team-mate to 20-times TT winner John McGuinness at Padgetts Racing.

   Having left the Moto 3 arena midway through the 2013 season, Webb turned his attention to the World Supersport Championship, competing in a number of races for PTR Racing, who not only played an instrumental part in the success of Michael Dunlop at the 2013 TT Races but also took Eugene Laverty and Sam Lowes to numerous wins and podiums on the World stage. Webb soon proved his talent on the 600cc machine too, scoring a best position of 11th at the final round in Spain.

   Speaking about his TT debut, Danny commented: “I’m a big TT fan. I've already been to the event and I have always said that I wanted to do it one day. It’s something that has been going through my mind more and more of late, and the opportunity came along to work with Ryan Farquhar who puts out some of the best bikes on the grid, so I simply couldn’t say no.”

   He continued: “It’s going to be a big change for me after years in the Grand Prix paddock, but it is something I am really looking forward to. I don’t see this being a one off thing either and I know it will take me many years to really learn my way around but for now I just can’t wait to get out there and make my debut.”

3. Dan Kneen links up with John Burrows for 2014 Isle of Man TT Races Campaign

   Posted on 7:53am Thursday 23rd Jan 2014

   Dan Kneen has made the move to BE Racing for the 2014 season with the talented Manxman looking to make a concerted attack on the 2014 Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy as well as the other International road races – the North West 200 and Ulster Grand Prix. He'll also appear in selected Irish national races, beginning his season with the Cookstown 100.

   Riding for the team owned and run by former racer John Burrows, Kneen will have a full assembly of machinery at his disposal including the ex-TAS Suzuki Superbike and a brand new 600cc Honda built to World Supersport specification. Kneen will also have selected outings on Burrows’ Kawasaki Supertwin whilst also retaining the use of the Marks Bloom Charted Accountants/Wemoto 1000cc Suzuki Superstock machine.

   The Dungannon businessman explained: "I wanted an exciting young rider that could take the team forward and Dan is the man in my opinion. He's already a proven top ten international finisher and with our quality machinery I believe he will be even closer to the top step of the podiums this year. I have no doubt that it's a combination that will work well."

   26-year-old Kneen from Braddan on the Isle of Man has been hampered in recent times by injury, which affected all of the last three seasons, but he remains one of the brightest young talents in road racing. He shot to prominence in 2008 when he scored a unique Manx Grand Prix treble, winning the newcomers, Junior and Ultra-Lightweight races. Since then he has matured into a top class international competitor with six top ten TT finishes to his credit and a best placed fifth in the 2010 Supersport 2 Race.

   Kneen, who has a fastest TT lap of over 127mph, has also made his mark in Ireland, taking top ten finishes in the North West 200. He achieved two wins at the Dundrod '150' meeting and took sixth and seventh in the two Ulster GP Supersport races in the same year. Kneen has made three visits to the Macau Grand Prix with a best finish of ninth in 2012.

   Speaking about the year ahead, Kneen commented: "I'm delighted to be joining John Burrows' team. I feel that John and his crew will provide me with everything that I need to challenge for international podium finishes. His bikes will be as good as anything around. In previous years, I've had to take care of all of the machine preparation myself but this year I will be able to concentrate solely on the racing. I'm going to have a great opportunity to show what I can do and I'm really looking forward to mixing it up at the front."

   He continued: "My main aim is podium finishes at the TT but I'll also be looking to go well in Ireland. I don't know any of the national circuits but John's experience will be a great help at all the places that are new to me and I'm confident that I can put on a good show everywhere, starting at Cookstown. I'd like to thank John for putting his faith in me and thanks to Marks Bloom for their continued support."

   Tickets are now on sale and selling fast for the 2014 TT Races. Glencrutchery Road Grandstand race day tickets are sold out but there are still TT Fan Zone Grandstand tickets available at Ballacrye, Creg Ny Baa and Nobles Park during practice and race days. Grandstand tickets are also available by purchasing VIP or Platinum Hospitality tickets. All tickets are available from www.iomtt.com or by phoning 00 44 (0)1624 640000.

   _

4. CONNOR BEHAN TO MAKE ISLE OF MAN TT DEBUT WITH KMR KAWASAKI

   Posted on 9:00am Tuesday 21st Jan 2014

   Cheshire’s Connor Behan will step up to the 2014 Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy, having agreed a deal to continue his relationship with KMR Kawasaki. The 21-year old will contest the 4-lap Monster Energy Supersport Races and the 3-lap bikesocial.co.uk Lightweight event on Kawasaki machinery.

   The Northwich rider enjoyed an excellent year with KMR Kawasaki in 2013, his first full season on the roads. Clearly benefitting from the expert tutelage of team boss Ryan Farquhar, Behan took a superb second place in the Manx Grand Prix Newcomers A Race, where he also set the fastest lap of the race at an impressive 115.139mph.

   Having made his public road race debut at the Southern 100 in 2011, taking sixth in the 400cc race, he contested a full season of racing in the 2013 Irish Junior and Senior Support Championships for KMR, ending the year in second overall in each series. The season saw him take no less than three wins and countless podiums in his debut year with victories coming at Cookstown, Armoy and Killalane. Indeed, he only missed out on the Junior Support title by five points.

   Prior to his fledgling road race career, Behan was a leading light on the short circuits, most notably in the National 600cc Superstock and British 125cc Championships. With a win and three podiums, the youngster took third overall in the 2011 600cc series, after placing seventh the year before, and he also achieved fifth and seventh places in the 2008 and 2009 125cc series.

   Commenting on his 2014 TT Races debut Connor Behan said: "I really enjoyed my first experience of racing on the Mountain Course at last year's Manx Grand Prix and I couldn't have a better mentor than Ryan Farquhar for racing at the TT. I'm just looking to build on what I learnt last year and to give a good account of myself and repay the faith that Ryan's shown in me."

   Tickets are now on sale and selling fast for the 2014 TT Races. Glencrutchery Road Grandstand race day tickets are sold out but there are still TT Fan Zone Grandstand tickets available at Ballacrye, Creg Ny Baa and Nobles Park during practice and race days. Grandstand tickets are also available by purchasing VIP or Platinum Hospitality tickets. All tickets are available from www.iomtt.com or by phoning 00 44 (0)1624 640000.

5. Antonio Maeso receives prestigious 'Golden Penguin' award as he battles back from injury

   Posted on 9:00am Monday 20th Jan 2014

   Spanish TT racer Antonio Maeso, who was injured in the 2013 Superbike TT in an accident at the Black Hut, has been given Spain's 'penguin of the year' award for being 'an example of bravery and spirit.'

   He picked up the award, sponsored by Motociclismo magazine, at the 33rd edition of the annual "Pingüinos de oro" (Golden Penguins) - a classic bike event, which took place last Sunday at Puente Duero near Valladolid, in Spain.

   The trophy, which has previously only been awarded to world champions, has a huge profile within Spain's motorcycling community. Antonio had previously been awarded the 'penguin of honour' for his 2013 TT races campaign.

   Other winners this year included Alex Criville, Spain's first 500cc world champion, who was awarded with the ‘Legend' Golden Penguin and Maverick Vinales and Carlos Checa, Spain's only world Superbike champion to date, who both won Golden Penguins.

   Commenting on his fitness battle, Antonio said: "It's been a tough battle. I've been doing three hours of physio a day since September and I'm progressing quite well. I've been told that I'll need at least six more months of recovery following the same programme before I can even consider getting back on a bike so I definitely won't be able to make this year's TT."