Honda (UK) have once again committed to supporting the Royal Air Force Reserves Racing project for the 2013 season. The team officially named RAF Reserves Racing in association with Honda will compete in the British Superstock 1000 Championship, as well as selected road races, including the world famous Isle of Man TT and Northwest 200, aboard their RAF Reserves Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade.

After a difficult first season in the Superstock 1000 Championship in 2012, the team have drafted in pro-rider and Honda TT Legend, Simon Andrews to spearhead the charge towards championship glory. Simon is no stranger to the short circuits, having raced in the British Superbike Championship – a championship which Superstock 1000 supports – on and off for many years, with numerous success including five podiums and two race wins.

Andrews is also part of the Honda TT Legends team that races in the Endurance World Championship on some of the world’s most revered circuits. To compliment his short circuit reputation, Andrews is also making a name for himself on the roads, showing blistering speed at last year’s Northwest 200 and Isle of Man TT before an accident and subsequent injury halted his progress. Now back fully fit, his mixture of experience at the highest level and raw racing talent makes him the ideal rider to take the RAF Reserves Racing project to the next level, challenging for regular race wins and the Superstock 1000 Championship outright.

The team will continue to be managed by Lee Hardy, an employee of the Forward Engineering Support Squadron at RAF Marham, a former racer himself and Team Manager for the last two years. Lee is quickly getting to grips with what is required to develop and manage a successful race team in the highest tier of domestic motorcycle racing. Technical aspects of race preparation and day to day management of the team’s racing activity will be handled by Lee Hardy and his team, they will benefit from technical input received from the race engineers of Honda Racing’s Samsung Honda team, the most successful in British Superbike Championship racing history.


Lee Hardy, Team Manager

“We are delighted to be continuing our relationship with both Honda and the RAF Reserves; we are currently looking to take the team to the next level. Last season was tough for us but it was invaluable experience and we learnt a lot, which we will be applying to our racing this year. With Simon Andrews now on board, we feel we have a rider who is capable of winning races and championships and we aim to provide him with the tools to do just that! The whole racing project is a valuable recruitment tool, the RAF Reserves are in the middle of a major recruiting campaign and my aim is to not only raise awareness but to ultimately try achieving their recruiting targets.”


Simon Andrews, Team Rider

“The project appealed to me from the outset and I was very interested to be a part of it, being the rider who carries the responsibility of a recruiting campaign is pretty exciting. I am looking forward to working with the RAF Reserves race team this season and it will provide me with an excellent opportunity to keep sharp throughout the season, in between racing duties with the Honda TT Legends and the road racing calendar. The Superstock 1000 Championship is very competitive but I have my sights set on winning it! After initial meetings with the team I could see that they were very professional and driven towards achieving success and that’s something I share. I think together we will make a good team, who knows, they may even get me signing up to the RAF Reserves at this rate, keep me sharp in the off-season!.”


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