Paul Bird Motorsport are a British
motorcycle
A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...
road racing, car racing and
rallying organisation. The owner Paul Bird competed as a rally driver and was formerly a solo-rider in
motocross
Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom.
History
Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competiti ...
. His son Frank is a car racer.
Motorcycle racing
The team competes in the
British Superbike Championship
The British Superbike Championship (BSB), currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Bennetts British Superbike Championship, is the leading road racing superbike championship in the United Kingdom, and was once widely acknowledged as the p ...
, using
Ducati machinery from 2016, based on the
1199 Panigale R,
[VisionTrack Ducati Launched In London](_blank)
Retrieved 22 October 2020 a change of manufacturer from
Kawasaki. They managed the
Kawasaki World Superbike team until
2011, and competed in
MotoGP from the
2012 season.
PBM competed in the
2014 British Superbike Championship as a two-rider team with
Shane Byrne and
Stuart Easton on board Kawasakis. Also in 2014
Ian Hutchinson joined Paul Bird Motorsport for a few rounds of Pirelli National Superstock 1000 competition on the Rapid Solicitors Kawasaki team, after which he again competed in the Macau road GP on Shane Byrne's superbike, but without his previous year's success, overshooting a corner and retiring after a low-speed fall. The race was won by PBM rider Stuart Easton.
For 2015 Hutchinson competed in selected BSB rounds and Paul Bird's first foray into racing on closed public roads in UK, involving the
North West 200
The International North West 200 is a Northern Irish motorsport event established in 1929 for road racing motorcycles held on a street circuit known as ''the Triangle'' between the towns of Portstewart, Coleraine and Portrush in Causeway Coast ...
and the
Ulster Grand Prix
The Ulster Grand Prix is a motorcycle race that takes place on the Dundrod Circuit made up entirely of closed-off public roads near Belfast, Northern Ireland. The first races took place in 1922 and in 1935 and 1948 the Fédération Internatio ...
in Northern Ireland and also in the
Isle of Man
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, anthem = "O Land of Our Birth"
, image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg
, image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg
, mapsize =
, map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe
, map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green)
in Europe ...
TT races, where he won three TT races and a TT Championship.
On 16 October 2015 Paul Bird Motorsport announced a sponsorship arrangement with
Be Wiser Insurance and that the 2016 BSB team would be four-time BSB champion
Shane Byrne and Glenn Irwin, riding
Ducati Panigale Rs. This sponsorship continued until the end of 2019 season. For 2020 and 2021, the team arranged a new title sponsor by
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
-based Video Telematics business VisionTrack, followed by MCE insurance from 2022.
Personal life
In December 2015, Paul Bird received a ban from organised
sport
Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...
competitions until July 2017 administered by UKAD, the
UK Anti-Doping
UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) is the organisation responsible for protecting sport in the United Kingdom from doping. It is a non-departmental public body of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and is structured as a company limited by guarante ...
agency, after failing a standard test for
banned substances. He tested positive for
cocaine
Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Ameri ...
after driving in a car rally event in July 2015. This was followed by an eight-year ban imposed in 2019 by UKAD, for refusing a drugs-test following a Welsh rally event in April 2018. The ban will run from 11 July 2018 until 2026.
Bird's son Frank drove in
Ford MSA Formula for
Fortec Motorsport
Fortec Motorsport Ltd. is a motor-racing team that races in the GB3 Championship. The team was bought in 1995 by current owner Richard Dutton.
Past drivers for the team include Juan Pablo Montoya, Gianmaria Bruni, Danny Watts, Jamie Green, ...
in 2016, after the 2015 season in
Ginetta Junior Championship.
For 2022, Frank Bird competed in
Asian Le Mans Series
The Asian Le Mans Series is an Asian sports car racing endurance series created by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and based in Asia. It is the successor to the defunct Japan Le Mans Challenge which folded in 2007 after its second season. ...
, having participated in some rally car driving during the winter, and intends to enter the
Sol Rally Barbados in June 2022, twice won by Paul Bird.
MotoGP
MotoGP team
PBM competed in the
2012 MotoGP season with an
ART-Aprilia bike entered to
CRT regulations ridden by
James Ellison James Ellison may refer to:
* James O. Ellison (1929–2014), U.S. federal judge
* James T. Ellison (1862–1920s), New York gangster
*James Ellison (actor) (1910–1993), American film actor
*James Ellison (footballer, born 1901) (1901–1958), En ...
,
and with riders
Michael Laverty
Michael Laverty (born 7 June 1981) is an occasional motorcycle racer from Toomebridge, Northern Ireland. After participating in the 2017 season in the British Superbike Championship aboard a Yamaha YZF-R1, and the 2018 season on a Tyco BMW, ...
and
Broc Parkes
Broc Parkes (born 24 December 1981) is an Australian motorcycle racer, best known for his success in the Supersport World Championship. He currently races in the Endurance FIM World Championship aboard a Yamaha YZF-R1.
During 2015 he raced i ...
in the 2014 MotoGP season before disbanding to concentrate on British Superbikes.
Results
(
key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
References
External links
* {{Official website, http://www.pbmuk.net/index.html
Profile on MotoGP.com
Motorcycle racing teams
Companies based in Cumbria
British auto racing teams