PRESS AND MEDIA INFORMATION
Thursday 11th February 2016
Be Wiser Ducati Launch Team In London
Following the announcement at the end of last season that four-times MCE BSB champion Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne will remain with the Paul Bird Motorsport team for the 2016 MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship, whereby he will be joined by promising Ulsterman Glenn Irwin, the Penrith-based team today officially launched the Be Wiser Ducati Team in London.
As well as the riders, sponsors and various team members being introduced to selected media and VIPs at the Sanctum Soho Hotel this afternoon, the team displayed the Be Wiser-liveried and fully factory-supported Ducati Panigale R which Byrne and Irwin will have at their disposal.
Both Byrne and Irwin will race under the Be Wiser Ducati banner following the association towards the end of 2015 between the leading insurance brand and Paul Bird’s team. The deal confirms a multi-year association with the nine-times British and National champions who have also sampled victories at World Superbike and MotoGP level.
The association with Ducati also heralds a return to the marque on which Steve Hislop and Shane Byrne both claimed British Superbike Championships for the Italian manufacturer under the MonsterMob Ducati branding in the early 2000s.
A hectic pre-season testing schedule both in the UK and in Spain will continue later this month in preparation for the 2016 MCE Insurance British Championship season which gets underway at Silverstone on April 10th 2016.
In addition to today’s team announcement, the team’s brand new website has been launched at www.pbmuk.net whereby details of the team, riders, sponsors, machine and 2016 calendar can be found.
Paul Bird, Team Owner: “We are deadly serious about winning the 2016 MCE British Superbike Championship so where better than an upmarket central London hotel to officially launch the team and to state our intentions. We have no other distractions away from BSB this year so we can fully concentrate on the job in hand and we are in good shape to win back the title that we so narrowly missed out on retaining last season. Shane and Glenn have been in constant training and we have had some good testing on the bikes already, with loads of potential still to come. We won’t be doing a lot of talking this year; we will leave our results to do that for us on the track.”
Notes to Editors:
Paul Bird Motorsport (PBM) are winners of over 160 races in British Superbike Championship, MotoGP CRT, World Superbike Championship, 125cc, 250cc, Supersport British Championships, Superstock National Championships, Isle of Man TT, North West 200, Daytona, Macau GP, and British domestic races. Points scorers in 125cc, 250cc and 500cc GPs, Points scorers in World Supersport, podium finishers in WSB, Superpole winners in World Superbike. They are based at Langwathby near Penrith in Cumbria.
Key Successes:
British Superbike Champions 2002/2003/2012/2014, British Supersport Champions 2002, British Superbike Rider’s Cup Champions 2014, British 250cc Champions 1999, National Superstock 1000 Champions 2012, National Superstock 600 Champions 2011, Isle of Man TT winners 1999/2000/2015, Daytona winners 1999/2000, NW200 winners, Macau GP winners, WSB race winners, MotoGP CRT race winners. National Rally Champions 2005.
Paul Bird Motorsport in the British Superbike Championship 2000 – 2015
Races Entered: 478
Pole Positions: 51
Race Wins: 72
Podiums: 102
Fastest Laps: 62
Record Laps: 27
Picture attached (courtesy of Jon Jessop): Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne (left) and Glenn Irwin (right) with the Be Wiser liveried Ducati Panigale Rs.
