Australian rider Rennie Scaysbrook will return to the Isle of Man TT Races in 2023, lining up alongside Welshman Matthew Rees in a two-man team for the Wilson Craig Racing team.
Scaysbrook was a TT debutante last year, when he raced just 600cc machines as he acquainted himself with the course. This year he will move up to the 1000cc classes and to ride a Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade in the RST Superbike, RL360 Superstock, and Milwaukee Senior TT Races. Rees will also contest the 1000cc classes as well as the Monster Energy Supersport and Supertwin Races for the team.
Scaysbrook was the winner in 2019; on an Aprilia V4; and remains the outright two wheel record holder at the famous and daunting 12.42-mile Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, held near to Colorado Springs. The race ends at the top of the mountain at 14115 feet above sea level. Scaysbrook made his TT debut riding with the PRF Racing team and although qualifying week was fraught with problems, he more than impressed with an average lap speed of over 117mph.
Although unable to quite replicate that speed in the two, rescheduled and shortened Supersport Races, he successfully completed both races with solid 37th and 44th place finishes and a best lap of 116.048mph.
Originally from Sydney, but now residing in the USA where he is the Road Test Editor at Cycle News Magazine, Scaysbrook will now add the Superbike, Senior and two Superstock races to his CV, riding for a vastly experienced team that can count Guy Martin, Cameron Donald and the late William Dunlop amongst its former riders.
Immediately recognisable in their traditional and familiar red and silver colours, the bikes and team are now in the hands of former racer Darren Gilpin and hopes are high for some strong performances across all of the races.
Rennie Scaysbrook: “I’m really looking forward to getting back to the Island. What started out as an idea to be a journalist-turned-racer at Pikes Peak and the TT has certainly escalated, and it’s fair to say I’ve got the TT bug now! Last year was good for me and I’m pleased with how I rode and how I prepared myself, but there were issues with the bike throughout the two weeks so I feel like I’ve got some unfinished business.”
“That being said, moving up from Supersport to Superbike means I’ll pretty much be learning the Course again – new braking markers, new riding style, jumps in places that weren’t jumps on the 600, all that sort of stuff. But it’s exciting, and it’s pretty amazing to already be riding with a team with such a good history, and I have to say a big thanks to Davo [Johnson] for putting in a good word for me with the team!”
Darren Gilpin, Wilson Craig Racing Team Owner: “Rennie’s story is great. He’s clearly a really talented racer given his success at Pikes Peak and how well he did in his debut year despite the issues he had, and so I’m excited to see how we can help him progress this year.”
“In Matthew, we’ve got a young, but experienced guy who I think we’ve yet to see the best of. I know he’s had his fair share of bike issues, particularly on the 1000cc bikes, over the years, which means we’ve not seen his true potential. We’ll be putting a great set of bikes together for him, pre-season testing has been good so far, so we’re excited to get going.”
Matthew has a best official (race) lap at 122.649mph; but his practice times suggest that he will be adding a few mph to that in this year’s races.
We wish both riders a safe and successful TT.
