Isle of Man TT 2012 features in biggest-ever Duke Rankings schedule
Monday 13 February 2012
TT
The 2012 Isle of Man TT fuelled by Monster Energy will be part of the Duke Road Race Rankings once again, it has been confirmed.
The TT has been a key round of the series since its launch in 2002, and will remain at the heart of the calendar this year, as the Duke Rankings enjoys its biggest-ever schedule.
The TT is one of the international meetings which features in the Rankings’s mix of large and small road racing events.
For 2012, road racing meetings in the Czech Republic have been added to the calendar, along with a new round in Ireland, bringing this year’s schedule to 27 rounds, the most in the history of the Duke Rankings.
The Czech meetings are the Horice Road Races, held on May 19 and 20, and the Terlicko Road Races, held on August 18th and 19th. The new Irish event is the East Cork Road Races on August 28th.
Duke Managing Director Peter Duke, who officially launched the 2012 Duke Rankings in the Isle of Man on Friday said:
“The original intention of the Duke Rankings was to recognise riders who were dedicated to ‘between the hedges’ road racing, by including the less well-known national events alongside the world-famous international meetings.”
“It is a reflection of the stature of the Rankings now that events around the world are keen to join the schedule. The addition of Macau in 2010 was a positive step forward and I am delighted we are now able to include meetings in the Czech Republic.”
“Interest in road racing continues to flourish around the world, and the Duke Rankings are now a genuinely international series. It is always competitive, but with so many people watching the results and more than 250 races over the year to decide the winner, this could be the toughest year yet!”
The 300 Curves of Gustav Havel meeting in May is held around a 5.15km circuit in Horice, in the north of the Czech Republic. It features 26 corners and 90 metres of elevation. The outright lap record is held by Petr Cermak, who lapped at an average speed of 83mph on a Yamaha R1. It is named in honour of racing great Gustav Havel, a regular at the TT during the 1960s, riding CZ and ‘works’ Jawas.
The Terlicko meeting in August is held near the city of Havirov, in the north east of the country. It hosted its first international race in 1967 and the 6.1km circuit is now regarded as the fastest in the Czech Republic. Michal Dokoupil, a regular at races in the Isle of Man, holds the lap record at 100mph.
The East Cork Road Races is a new meeting scheduled for late August. Full details of the circuit and timetable are to be confirmed.
The 2012 Duke Road Race Rankings are scheduled to start on April 15 with the Ian Watson Spring Cup Road Races at Oliver’s Mount, Scarborough, and conclude seven months later at the Macau GP on November 17.
The Rankings are the only series which measures performance across the entire road racing season, effectively creating a ‘championship’ for those dedicated to competing ‘between the hedges’. It was created by Duke Marketing and first run in 2002, when TT veteran Ian Lougher took the title.
Over the years, Lougher has claimed the win three times, Manxman Conor Cummins once, in 2007, and Dungannon’s Ryan Farquhar, a TT winner, an amazing six times.
Last year he topped the Rankings for the fourth year in a row and was the first to receive the all-new Geoff Duke Trophy – the original being handed to Ryan to keep to mark his hat-trick.
In 2011, Ryan was pushed all the way by Dunlop brothers Michael and William, but held onto his lead to the bitter end, and was delighted to receive his prize at the star-studded Adelaide Motorcycle Awards in Belfast last month.
Mr Duke added:
“Real road racing continues to go from strength-to-strength, with the international meetings attracting top riders and leading teams, and the national events boasting packed grids across the classes.”
“The growth in popularity is no surprise – real road racing has variety, close racing where the machinery is less important than the rider, lots of spectacle and the riders are easily accessible to their fans.”
“From the deep south of Ireland to street racing in the Far East, this is the sort of racing that more and more fans enjoy.”
“I am pleased that the Duke Rankings have played their part in raising the profile of meetings throughout the British Isles and look forward to seeing the same effect in Europe and further afield.”