A unique opportunity to join forces with one of the most successful teams in TT history is being offered by team boss Clive Padgett.
With just days to go until the 2011 Isle of Man TT fuelled by Monster Energy roars into action, Clive has revealed he would be delighted for individuals or businesses who want to get involved with the team to come on board.
Clive said new partners could be Isle of Man-based or international and interested in just joining for the TT or the whole season, which includes British short circuit championship outings and more road racing dates.
The Padgetts team is synonymous with the TT, and is one of motorcycle racing’s most successful, best known and most fondly regarded names. The team is famed for its friendliness and passion for racing, Padgetts has also made a name for itself as a professional and race-winning outfit.
The Padgetts team can claim the rare honour of having taken TT wins in every decade since the 1960s, culminating in the absolute dominance of 2010, when rider Ian Hutchinson took the team’s Hondas to victory in every single solo race of the TT.
Hutchy has moved teams, and will miss the TT due to injury, but Clive has once again secured the services of John McGuinness, the 15-times TT winner and outright lap record holder, to ride alongside new signing Bruce Anstey. McGuinness will contest the Superstock and Supersport races for Padgetts, while Kiwi Anstey will race for the team in all classes.
With its amazing record on the Mountain course, the unbelievable experience of 2010 and two of the strongest road racers around on the team’s machinery, Clive believes 2011 will be another strong year for Padgetts – and he’d like to give people a chance to get involved.
He said:
“Over the years we have managed to build a really successful brand, there are very few motorcycle dealerships – which is what we are – with this sort of credibility on the race track.”
“Some people probably think because of what we have built that we are big, big, big, perhaps too big for them to think about getting involved with us. But we are a close-knit team which understands passion, understand business and understands people’ wanting to get involved.”
“With the TT close now, the message is quite simple. If you’ve ever thought about getting involved in backing a racing team, we want you to have that opportunity.”
“This is an opportunity for Manx companies to get involved at any level, big or small. It doesn’t have to be Manx companies, anyone anywhere around the world who’d like to be part of the Padgetts team we’d like to hear from them”
“The level of involvement is down to the sponsor, it could be just for the TT or go beyond, it could be title sponsorship or a smaller contribution. I just thought with the enthusiasm surrounding the TT there might be someone out there who would like to take us up on this.”
“I look forward to hearing from anyone, from an individual right through to a major PLC.”
Clive admits a whitewash of the results as the team enjoyed last year may not be on the cards, but backing the team this year is no gamble.
He explained:
“The way I look at it is it took 103 years for anyone to do what we did last year, so the law of averages would say it’s going to take another 103 years to do again. But we did do it last year, TT 2010 was all about Padgetts and that will generate interest in the team this year.”
“Add in that we have Bruce and John, with 22 TT wins between them, and that the team, like the riders, is hungry for more victories, and joining us is not a gamble.”
“An equation I like to look at is that of the last 11 solo big bikes races, we have won eight, that’s some record and we want more.”
“For us this is a passion, not a job, we love what we do. The team is made up of racers, and that’s a real asset, and that passion breeds passion and results.”
“You don’t retain a rider of John’s calibre without being able to deliver and Bruce has come into this season hungry and brimming with confidence. He is well up for the challenge and is putting his all in, we did five tests before the season, the first round of the BSB, the North West and Bruce has been out on the motocross bike we gave him. I think it is refreshing to see we have brought that passion and determination to win out.”
Clive, as businessman, fully understands sponsorship is a two-way street.
He said:
“I know we have to give something back, I am a businessman and understand the relationship. I’m ready to talk to people about how they can get involved, and what we can do for them - but the TT is nearly here so, if you’re interested in being part of the Padgetts story, we need to hear from you now.”
If you’d like to discuss opportunities to back Padgetts, please email [email protected]