The Isle of Man TT or Tourist Trophy races are an annual motorcycle racing event run on the Isle of Man in May/June of most years since its inaugural race in 1907. The event is often called one of the most dangerous racing events in the world as many competitors have died.
Barry Steven Frank Sheene was a British professional motorcycle racer. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing and was a two-time world champion, winning consecutive 500cc titles in 1976 and 1977.
Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. is a Japanese multinational manufacturer of motorcycles, marine products such as boats and outboard motors, and other motorized products. The company was established in 1955 upon separation from Yamaha Corporation, and is headquartered in Iwata, Shizuoka, Japan. The company conducts development, production and marketing operations through 109 consolidated subsidiaries as of 2012.
Stanley Michael Bailey Hailwood, was a British professional motorcycle racer and racing driver. He is regarded by many as one of the greatest racers of all time. He competed in the Grand Prix motorcycle world championships from 1958 to 1967 and in Formula One between 1963 and 1974. Hailwood was known as "Mike The Bike" because of his natural riding ability on motorcycles with a range of engine capacities.
Giacomo Agostini is an Italian multi-time world champion Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. Nicknamed Ago, he amassed 122 Grand Prix wins and 15 World Championship titles. Of these, 68 wins and 8 titles came in the 500 cc class, the rest in the 350 cc class. For these achievements obtained over the course of a career spanning 17 years, the AMA described him as "...perhaps the greatest Grand Prix rider of all time". In 2000, Agostini was inducted into the MotoGP Hall of Fame as a MotoGP Legend, while in 2010, he was named an FIM Legend for his motorcycling achievements. He considers himself a "dubious" Roman Catholic.
Pat Hennen is an American former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. He is notable for being the first American to win a 500 cc World Championship race, the 1976 500cc Finnish Grand Prix. Competing as a non-factory rider, he finished third overall in the GP World Championship standings that season, only 2 points behind runner-up Tepi Länsivuori and fellow Suzuki factory rider Barry Sheene.
Phillip William Read, was an English professional motorcycle racer. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from 1961 to 1976. Read is notable for being the first competitor to win world championships in the 125 cc, 250 cc and 500 cc classes. Although he was often overshadowed by his contemporary, Mike Hailwood, he won seven FIM Grand Prix road racing world championships.
Stephen James Parrish also known as "Stavros", is a British former professional motorcycle and truck racer, who is now a motorsport television commentator and speaker/entertainer.
James Michael "Jamie" Whitham, is an English former professional motorcycle road racer. He raced in most major British and international championships, winning the British championship twice. The readers of Motorcycle News voted him 'Man of the Year' in both 1991 and 1996.
William David Ivy was an English professional Grand Prix motorcycle racer from Maidstone, Kent. He died during practice for a race in East Germany.
Kelvin Carruthers is an Australian former world champion Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and racing team manager. After his motorcycle riding career, he became race team manager for world championship winning riders Kenny Roberts and Eddie Lawson.
Mick Grant is an English former professional motorcycle road racer and TT rider. A works-supported rider for Norton, Kawasaki, Honda and Suzuki, he is a seven-time winner of the Isle of Man TT motorcycle race on various makes, including 'Slippery Sam', a three-cylinder Triumph Trident. The son of a coal miner, the soft-spoken, down-to-earth Yorkshireman from Wakefield, was a sharp contrast to the brash, playboy image presented by Londoner Barry Sheene during the 1970s.
Paul Smart was an English short circuit motorcycle road racer who later entered Grands Prix.
Charles Mortimer is an English former professional motorcycle short-circuit road racer and race-school instructor. He competed in the Grand Prix motorcycle road racing world championships from 1969 to 1979. He remains the only competitor to have won FIM Grand Prix races in the 125, 250, 350, 500 and 750 world championship classes.
John Williams was an English motorcycle short-circuit road racer who also entered selected Grands Prix on the near-continent. He mostly raced as a "privateer" having a personal sponsor, Gerald Brown. Williams died in Northern Ireland, following an accident when racing at an event held on closed public roads near Dundrod.
Maria Costello MBE from Spratton in Northamptonshire, is a British motorcycle racer who held the Guinness World Record for being the fastest woman to lap the Isle of Man TT course at an average speed of 114.73 mph until Jenny Tinmouth took the record at the 2009 TT.
Ian Hutchinson is an English professional motorcycle road racer specialising in events held on closed public roads, such as the Isle of Man TT, the North West 200 and Ulster Grand Prix.
Daniel Richard Kneen was a professional motorcycle racer from Douglas, Isle of Man.
The Transatlantic Trophy was an annual series of motorcycle races between the United Kingdom and America held from 1971 to 1988 and again in 1991. They were mostly held over the Easter weekend at Brands Hatch, Mallory Park and Oulton Park, although some races were held at Donington Park and Snetterton. Three different specifications of motorcycles were used in the series at various times: AMA/F750, Superbike and GP.
Dave Potter was an English motorcycle racer who won the British Superbike Championship twice. Potter crashed during a race at Oulton Park on 31 August 1981 and suffered head injuries from which he died in hospital 17 days later.
