Introducing the Isle of Wight TT
On a small island off the coast of the UK sits a network of excellent roads, and a welcoming bunch of motorsport-loving locals. The legendary Isle of Man may spring to mind, but in a surprising twist of fate, it is in fact the southerly Isle of Wight that has this week announced its racing intentions for next year.
That’s right, October 2021 will see the inaugural Diamond Races, set to take place on 12.4-mile course around the south of the island, including a fast five-mile coastal stretch. In a similar fashion to the legendary IOMTT, the race will pass through the Island’s villages, those of Chale, Kingston, Shorwell and Brighstone.
Due to be held in a time-trial format, the Auto Cycle Union (ACU) sanctioned and Isle of Wight council-supported race will take place following the final round of the British Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch in Kent. There will be races for Superbike, Supersport and Lightweight machines, with two practice days on Wednesday and Thursday, followed a rest day and a race day. Plans also include a sidecar demonstration lap, with an electric motorcycle category to follow in future.
Plans for the £2 million event have been in the pipeline for the past year, with a panel of experienced motorsport professionals involved. Isle of Man TT clerk of the course Gary Thompson, ex-racer and former Honda Racing team manager Neil Tuxworth and ex-British champion and two-time TT winner, Steve Plater, are all onboard, as are three-time British Touring Car champion Matt Neal and fellow former BTCC driver James Kaye. Co-founders Paul Sandford and BTCC driver James Cahill are both Isle of Wight residents.
Speaking to MCN, Clerk of the Course Gary Thompson, said: "The road surface on the course is excellent and we have fantastic support from the Highways Agency.
"Steve Plater and Matt Neal have been doing a lot of laps over the last five months so I have now produced a comprehensive risk assessment. There are some changes to be made to maximise safety and we’ll have line of sight marshalling around the entire lap.
"It’s a 12.8-mile course, but at this stage we don’t know an exact lap time, but we think it will be around eight minutes. It’s a time trial event so a rider will go every 10 seconds and we’re aiming for between 30 and 36 riders as we need time for the grid to be clear by the time the first rider comes round again."
Preparation for the race will be immense, with a reported 2,500 centre white lines to be treated, 1,050 cat’s eyes to be removed and 177 manhole covers treated with anti-slip.
Isle of Man TT
Road racing
Motorcycle racing
Isle of Wight
