Photo: iomtt.com
Northern Irish road racer Ryan Farquhar will replace Guy Martin in team TAS Racing this year. He will take the charismatic Lincolnshire rider’s place in the Superbike team and will be astride a Tyco BMW S1000RR machine.
The three-time TT winner will thus become the teammate of successful road racer Ian Hutchinson, who has 11 wins to his name. With these two highly-experienced riders in the team, TAS Racing now stands even more chances in the RST Superbike TT and PokerStars Senior TT races.
Ryan Farquhar, who turned 40 in February, started racing in the Isle of Man in 2003 and was regarded as one of the best riders, despite not winning any race, yet breaking the lap record in the 600cc class. His first victory came one year later, in the Production 600 race.
He and TAS have also worked together in the past, so it's just history repeating, more or less. In 2009, Ryan Farquhar surpassed Joey Dunlop's record for Irish National race wins, which stood at 118 victories. He still holds the record, but set the bar at 201.
Farquhar's uncle Trevor Ferguson, also a racer, lost his life in a crash during the 2012 Manx Grand Prix, and Ryan announced that he would retire from the sport with immediate effect. He returned to racing almost one year later, having former rival Keith Amor as a teammate. Farquhar's last wins arrived in 2014, so he's not that rusty, despite his age and the less frequent racing events he's a part of.
“Having purchased a Superstock BMW with support from TAS Racing for this season, I got chatting to Philip Neill and from there the Superbike ride on the Tyco BMW came about. It’s one of those situations that just seems like it was meant to be.
“I never thought at this stage of my career I was going to get the chance to ride a competitive Superbike at the TT again. So to be riding for Tyco BMW with full support from BMW Motorrad and a great team of people around me, is a great opportunity,” Farquhar tells iomtt.
“Initially Ryan contacted me about the potential of some support on a deal to purchase a BMW Superstock bike for this year, which we were happy to get involved with at TAS Racing. The racing conversation and consequently a Superbike deal stemmed from there, and with his talent, experience and ability; not to mention his technical knowledge, he will be an asset to us on the Tyco BMW Superbike. Taking all of that into consideration made it an easy decision to include Ryan in our plans.”
2016 Isle of Man practice starts Saturday, May 28, races start on June 4.
Ryan Farquhar, who turned 40 in February, started racing in the Isle of Man in 2003 and was regarded as one of the best riders, despite not winning any race, yet breaking the lap record in the 600cc class. His first victory came one year later, in the Production 600 race.
He and TAS have also worked together in the past, so it's just history repeating, more or less. In 2009, Ryan Farquhar surpassed Joey Dunlop's record for Irish National race wins, which stood at 118 victories. He still holds the record, but set the bar at 201.
Farquhar's uncle Trevor Ferguson, also a racer, lost his life in a crash during the 2012 Manx Grand Prix, and Ryan announced that he would retire from the sport with immediate effect. He returned to racing almost one year later, having former rival Keith Amor as a teammate. Farquhar's last wins arrived in 2014, so he's not that rusty, despite his age and the less frequent racing events he's a part of.
The Isle of Man TT Superbike deal was a funny thing
The Northern Irishman says that the Superbike deal materialized in a rather funny way, after he bought a Superstock BMW bike with support from TAS. One thing led to another and after a short talk with team officials, the deal was done.“Having purchased a Superstock BMW with support from TAS Racing for this season, I got chatting to Philip Neill and from there the Superbike ride on the Tyco BMW came about. It’s one of those situations that just seems like it was meant to be.
“I never thought at this stage of my career I was going to get the chance to ride a competitive Superbike at the TT again. So to be riding for Tyco BMW with full support from BMW Motorrad and a great team of people around me, is a great opportunity,” Farquhar tells iomtt.
Team Manager Philip Neill:
“Barring one or two years in the past fifteen, we’ve always represented a manufacturer in an official capacity at the TT with a two-rider team. This year we were tempted to run with just Ian [Hutchinson] after Guy decided to sit it out, but there was always a desire, should a suitable rider come along, to have two riders on Tyco BMWs at the June event.“Initially Ryan contacted me about the potential of some support on a deal to purchase a BMW Superstock bike for this year, which we were happy to get involved with at TAS Racing. The racing conversation and consequently a Superbike deal stemmed from there, and with his talent, experience and ability; not to mention his technical knowledge, he will be an asset to us on the Tyco BMW Superbike. Taking all of that into consideration made it an easy decision to include Ryan in our plans.”
2016 Isle of Man practice starts Saturday, May 28, races start on June 4.
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