Just for talent development? PTR Triumph merges with BSB team

Regular readers of SPEEDWEEK.com will already know that, despite its achievements, the Triumph PTR team must cede its factory status to Renegade, but will remain loyal to the manufacturer and will be fielding the new Street Triple 798RS. Two-time Supersport World Champion Dominique Aegerter and Josh Whatley have been signed as riders.

On Friday, PTR boss Simon Buckmaster announced a further development. In future, the team will be entering into a close partnership with Team XMT – the acronym stands for Xtra Mile Racing – to promote British talent. The team, founded by Chris Hicks, competes in the national series in the Sportbike and Supersport categories.

“I met Chris early last year. We supplied him with some parts, and then we started talking more and more often and realised that we share the same goals and ambitions,” explained Buckmaster. “So we began working more closely together, and towards the end of the year we jointly fielded Josh Whatley in the British Supersport series at Thruxton, Assen and Donington, which ultimately resulted in two podium finishes, a third place and a second place by the end of the year. We then decided to expand this collaboration into a joint team and work together to develop young British riders alongside experienced riders, with the aim of bringing more British talent into world championship racing.”

Looking to the future, the partnership is intended not only to foster talent, but also to build technical expertise and forge closer links between national and international competitions.

PTR and XMT united under one banner

XMT founder Chris Hicks hints that this is, in fact, a merger of the two teams. The new team name, PTR XMT Racing, also points to a merger of the two structures. For the record: former 500cc racer Buckmaster is 65 years old.

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“We came up with the idea of creating a career pathway leading from the sportsbike class in the UK, through the Supersport class in the UK, right up to this dream start in the Supersport World Championship. All of this will take place under one banner, as it is the same team across all classes – something that has never been done before,” emphasised Hicks. “With Simon’s vast experience and extensive knowledge, combined with my fresh enthusiasm and determination, I feel that we’ll have a role to play.”