Rory Skinner (born 27 September 2001) is a championship winning British motorcycle racer from Perth, Scotland, who also works as a motorcycle mechanic.
[Perth motorcycle sensation Rory Skinner opens up on his stunning performances, the racing setbacks he’s faced and his fight to reach the top](_blank)
''The Courier'', 8 September 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2020 After the 2019 season in
British Supersport on a Kawasaki, for 2020 he moved to Appleyard Yamaha racing. Skinner dominated the 2020 British Supersport Championship, winning the first six races, and was crowned champion after his eighth victory of the season.
For 2021 and 2022, Skinner moved into the British Superbike Championship. He missed the last two 2022 rounds due to a hand injury sustained when he crashed into the back of another rider in late September.
[BSB: Rory Skinner sustains multiple hand fractures in Oulton Park crash](_blank)
'' Motorcycle News'', 26 September 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2022[2022 British Superbike Brands Hatch - Qualifying Results. "Showdown riders reigning champion Tarran Mackenzie and the Moto2 bound Rory Skinner both remain absent through injury."](_blank)
crash.net, 15 October 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2022
For 2023 and 2024, Skinner is contracted to race in the
Moto2 world championship with American Racing Team.
Skinner was the inaugural champion of the
British Talent Cup
The Honda British Talent Cup is a United Kingdom junior motorcycle racing series. It was founded in 2018 for riders at ages 12 to 17 from the British Isles to apply.
One rider will be given a chance to race full-time in the FIM CEV Moto3 Junio ...
, a motorcycle racing series for young riders. He is a former race winner in the
Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup
The Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup is a motorcycle racing series contested by young, up-and-coming motorcycle riders, who have not had experience in a motorcycle grand prix previously. The class was founded in 2007, and since then a number of the rook ...
, as well as the 2014 Dunlop Aprilia Superteens Champion and a multiple mini-moto champion.
Skinner is managed by former
MotoGP
Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the premier class of motorcycle road racing events held on road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held since the start ...
rider
John Hopkins.
Career
Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup
On 17 October 2014, the then 13-year-old Skinner was selected as the only British rider to compete in the
2015 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup
The 2015 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup was the ninth season of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. After the selection event held from 14 to 16 October 2014 at Circuito Guadix in Spain and pre-season testing, held in April 2015 in Aragon, the season be ...
, following the selection event at the Guadix circuit in Spain.
Skinner ended his debut season in the championship in 10th position, with his best results coming at the final round in Aragon, Spain. On the weekend of his 14th birthday, Skinner qualified on pole position and took third place in each of the two races. It was also confirmed that he would continue in the championship in 2016.
Despite missing the first round of the 2016 championship through injury, Skinner moved up to sixth in the overall standings - scoring third place podium finishes at
Assen and Aragon.
The Scot took his first and only Rookies win in the opening race of the 2017 season at Jerez. It was his only podium finish of the season and he slipped back to 12th in the final standings.
At the end of 2017 it was confirmed that he was leaving the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, having competed in the maximum three seasons allowed under the rules.
FIM CEV Moto3 Junior World Championship
As well as competing in the Red Bull Rookies MotoGP Cup, Skinner raced in the FIM CEV Moto3 Junior World Championship for the KRP team, as part of the
Racing Steps Foundation The Racing Steps Foundation, abbreviated as RSF, was an organisation founded by Graham Sharp running from 2008 to 2017 with former Formula One driver, the late John Surtees as the ambassador for the organization. RSF aided young British racing drive ...
programme.
Riding a
KTM
KTM AG (Kraftfahrzeug Trunkenpolz Mattighofen, formerly KTM Sportmotorcycle AG) is an Austrian motorcycle, bicycle and sports car manufacturer owned by Pierer Mobility AG and the Indian manufacturer Bajaj Auto. It was formed in 1992 but traces ...
motorcycle, the Scot scored a best result of fifth and finished 13th in the
2017 FIM CEV Moto3 Junior World Championship
The 2017 FIM CEV Moto3 Junior World Championship was the sixth CEV Moto3 season and the fourth under the FIM banner.
Calendar
The following races were scheduled to take place in 2017.
Entry list
Championship standings
;Scoring system
Points ...
.
British Talent Cup
With his time in the Red Bull Rookies complete and
Racing Steps Foundation The Racing Steps Foundation, abbreviated as RSF, was an organisation founded by Graham Sharp running from 2008 to 2017 with former Formula One driver, the late John Surtees as the ambassador for the organization. RSF aided young British racing drive ...
closing its doors, Skinner found himself without a ride for 2018. He was handed a lifeline when Dorna offered him a place in the inaugural British Talent Cup, despite him not having officially applied to join the series. Skinner was fastest in the pre-season test at the
Valencia
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...
circuit in Spain, and took his first win at the second round in Donington Park.
On 17 November 2018 Skinner became the inaugural British Talent Cup champion at the Valencia circuit in Spain.
British Supersport Championship
For 2019, British Superbike Championship veteran
Chris Walker provided Skinner with a
Kawasaki ZX-6R for his privateer campaign.
In a team run by his father Mike, the 18-year-old finished the season seventh overall, making him the top ranked rookie and best placed Kawasaki rider. His best result was a third place at Donington Park.
For 2020, Skinner was signed by former Grand Prix racer
Robin Appleyard to ride a
Yamaha R6
The Yamaha YZF-R6 is a sport bike, produced by Yamaha as a 600 class from 1999 to 2020. From 2021, production availability is limited to race-only specification in most global markets, causing race organisers to re-align their engine eligibility ...
, and he dominated the championship. He won the first six races in a row, and secured the championship with two races to spare at Donington Park on 4 October 2020, becoming the series' youngest ever champion at 19 years and seven days old.
British Superbike Championship
On 28 November 2020 it was announced that Skinner would move up to the
British Superbike Championship in 2021, riding for the FS-3 Kawasaki team. In July, Skinner recorded his first podium finishes when twice finishing runner-up at
Knockhill
Knockhill Racing Circuit is a motor racing circuit in Fife, Scotland. It opened in September 1974 and is Scotland's national motorsport centre. The circuit is located in the countryside about north of Dunfermline. It is the only FIA approved ...
.
In 2022 season he was the third rider to qualify for the end of season 'Showdown' and, at 20 years old, the youngest Title Fighter in the championship's history. He was unable to challenge for the title due to injuries and missed the last two rounds with a broken hand sustained when he crashed into the back of another rider at
Oulton Park.
Moto2 World Championship
2022
In 2022, Skinner had two
wildcard rides in the
Moto2 world championship, organised by John Hopkins with his American Racing team.
2023–
In October 2022 Skinner signed to race in the Moto2 world championship for the American Racing team during
2023
Events
Predicted and scheduled events
* January 1
** In the United States, books, films, and other works published in 1927 will enter the public domain, assuming there are no changes made to copyright law.
** Croatia will adopt the eu ...
and 2024.
Career statistics
British Supersport Championship
Races by year
(
key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
** Season limited to 12 races because of COVID-19 pandemic.
British Superbike Championship
(
key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
Moto2 World Championship
Races by year
(
key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
References
External links
*
Profile on British Superbike ChampionshipProfile on British Talent CupProfile on Red Bull MotoGP Rookies(Archived)
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skinner, Rory
Scottish motorcycle racers
2001 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Perth, Scotland
People educated at Perth High School
British Supersport Championship riders
British Superbike Championship riders
Moto2 World Championship riders