Here I am finishing preparations for Round 8 of the British Superstock 1000 Championship at Cadwell Park, and in a totally different space to when you last heard from me.
Early in the season I was left without a ride, so missed two rounds of the championship. This led me to make one of the biggest decisions in my career, to stay in the UK and start my own team.
Dubbed No Bull Racing the name speaks for itself. Now I’m back in control of my own destiny and if things don’t go to plan I’ve only got myself to blame.
Initially the biggest challenge was where to start? I didn’t have a bike, tools, workshop, storage or a way to transport the bike – let alone team personal.
Not having a bike gave me a big choice about what I wanted to ride and start fresh with. It was easy to choose Suzuki as my latter years in dirt track and whole road racing career in Australia have been based around the brand, and I have really wanted to ride the new GSX-R1000R.
The British championship has a single-bike rule so we bought one bike and a good amount of spares to get started. If there is anyone who can get the most out of a Suzuki it’s Phil Tainton Racing – so my suspension, electronics and most of the race-specific parts were sent from Australia. I’m a motorcycle mechanic by trade so a few long days and late nights got it converted into a race-ready machine. I rode it at four track days before returning to the BSB paddock.
Thankfully a lot of my other major issues were helped by Joe Hughes International, a speedway shop run by the nicest people you would ever meet. A pure coincidence when I first arrived in England led me to meet the Hughes family who I refer to as my UK parents. Their general support and help is priceless. They moved their entire warehouse around to give me space to work on my bike and storage. They also loan me their motorhome for race weekends.
Finding sponsorship is something I work on daily, but thankfully I have continued support from very loyal sponsors in Australia, as well as some others here in England. I’m not going to lie and say sponsorship pays for racing because we all know racing is expensive and sponsors are hard to find. The simple fact is if it wasn’t for my parents I wouldn’t have been able to do this. Most racing families will relate; my parents made huge sacrifices, work tirelessly and put everything into helping me chase my dream. Although this lifestyle isn’t sustainable, so hopefully things will start going to plan.
Our team is small but efficient. It consists of my partner Eliza who, as well as holding down a full-time job, manages a huge role in running the team. I also have two mechanics working for me during race weekends so I can concentrate on riding.
No Bull Racing is one of several privateer teams on the Superstock 1000 grid. The likes of Tyco BMW, Buildbase Suzuki and major factory teams set the standard, although often the big trucks and flash equipment can give false impressions.
I truly believe that with the right people in my corner my small family-run team can be just as good, if not better, than a lot of others here.
Although I’m still finding my feet, we are always improving. No Bull Racing has competed in four rounds with a personal best finish of 16th. This season has been a learning year in so many ways, but right now I’m sure I will be battling among the point-scoring positions very soon. No bull!
As appeared in AMCN Magazine Vol 68 No 05
