The UK will get its own presence in the MotoGP™ World Championships in 2022, as former MotoGP, British Superbike and current World Endurance Championship racer Michael Laverty today confirmed he is to launch an all-new British team in the prestigious Moto3™ World Championship – VisionTrack Honda Racing Team.
The Northern Irishman is to expand his existing MLav VisionTrack Academy to create a two-rider set-up in Grand Prix racing’s Moto3 series with a rider announcement to follow in due course.
The VisionTrack Honda team will predominantly be made up of British engineers, technicians, and support staff, will run Honda machinery, and has the aim of supporting and developing British talent at the elite level.
The former British Supersport champion created his MLav VisionTrack Academy in 2020 during the UK’s first lockdown with the support of VisionTrack’s CEO Simon Marsh, in order to identify and nurture young motorcycle racers from the UK in the British Minibike Series. They have since supported youngsters taking part in the British Talent Cup - which forms part of the Road to MotoGP™ development programme.
Team Principal Michael Laverty commented: “The path to the pinnacle of motorcycle racing is not an easy one for any rider, but for some time now it has become especially difficult for British youngsters to make it, without a home-grown team competing at the top level. Far too often young British riders have been overlooked because of a lack of sponsorship or financial support.
“Now, thanks to the fantastic structures and a title sponsor, VisionTrack already in place we know there is a lot of talent out there just waiting for an opportunity. We believe that with the VisionTrack Honda team we can offer them a more supportive route into grand prix racing.
“The UK has a rich history of grand prix success on two-wheels, and our aim is to help change the future by providing a route into the world’s premier motorcycle racing series for our talented youngsters.”