FHO RACING BMW MOTORRAD WITHDRAWS FROM THE 2023 NORTH WEST 200
The FHO Racing BMW Motorrad workforce are withdrawing from the 2023 fonaCAB and Nicholl Oils North West 200 as a result of no confidence within the software of the Superstock technical rules.
The Superstock class technical rules mandate the machines should absolutely adjust to circumstances relating to the wheels, the place Superstock machines should stay with the initially homologated wheels from the producer, which from BMW are carbon. It then goes on to ban carbon materials, nevertheless aftermarket wheels are additionally not allowed and no mandated different specification is prescribed.
The FHO Racing BMW M 1000 RR machines handed scrutineering on Tuesday (9 Might) and had been allowed to participate in all qualifying classes earlier than being knowledgeable they weren’t allowed to race moments earlier than the Briggs Tools Superstock race this night.
Having taking this difficulty out with the fonaCAB and Nicholl Oils North West 200 organisers, there isn’t any confidence that the FHO Racing riders might participate in a race with the plain risks, and dangers that street racing prevents after which the efficiency protested or disqualified on a technicality that isn’t adequately defined.
The FHO Racing workforce have checked the 2023 technical rules in opposition to these of 2022 and the rules stay the identical, the place the workforce raced the carbon homologated wheels in each Superstock races, in addition to the occasion in 2019.
The hassle dedication and logistics required to compete within the North West 200 are important and this insecurity within the organisation renders the workforce’s participation on this yr’s occasion unattainable.
The FHO Racing workforce wish to sincerely apologise to all its sponsors and followers, and the workforce are actually trying ahead to getting again out on the roads in a number of weeks time on the Isle of Man TT Races.
Extra, from a press release issued by North West 200 organizers:
The technical rules of the Motorbike Union of Eire (Ulster Centre), underneath which the fonaCAB and Nicholl Oils North West 200 is run, state that carbon wheels aren’t permitted to be used at any MCUI street race occasion.
These rules, that are carried out by the MCUI Stewards of the Assembly, had been accredited by the game’s governing physique in January 2023 and revealed on the North West 200’s web site at that stage.
The FHO Racing BMW workforce had been knowledgeable by the MCUI’s Stewards after qualifying on Thursday afternoon that their riders, Peter Hickman and Josh Brookes, could be excluded from the Briggs Tools Superstock race as their machines had been fitted with carbon wheels.
The NW200 organisers had been knowledgeable of the Steward’s choice, which is closing and binding upon the occasion, at 21.30pm on Thursday evening throughout the closing Steward’s assembly.
No such motion had been mentioned with the NW200 organisers previous to this time regardless of the machines having been scrutineered on each Tuesday and Thursday morning.
We deeply remorse the FHO Racing BMW workforce’s choice to withdraw from the occasion tonight on account of this motion, a sentiment we all know will probably be shared by all NW200 race followers.
