After a fantastic Southern 100 in the south of the Island last week, we shifted our attention to the north, where a blisteringly hot race weekend took place at Jurby Circuit. Rounds 5 and 6 of the Andreas Racing Association Motorcycle and Sidecar Racing Championships took place across the weekend, with Saturday using the anti-clockwise configuration and Sunday switching to clockwise. The club held its annual club BBQ on the Saturday evening which saw well over 100 people attend from the paddock, its a really nice way for the club to give back and thank all the people involved and the competitors. The MHK for Motorsport, Sarah Maltby, paid a visit on Sunday and spent the day with ARA. Sarah was really impressed and couldn’t believe how many young riders were coming through the classes at Jurby with ARA.
The weekend got off to an exciting start with Jamie Cringle and Rory Parker resuming their on-track battle for the ARA Swagelok Solo Centre Championship, with only 12 points between them after four rounds. Cringle took the lead from the start, with Parker hot on his tail. Parker led the third lap; however, Cringle managed to regain the lead and held it until the end of the race, despite a very brave move from Parker on the final lap, attempting to overtake around the outside at Tyers Curve and Knights, which saw Parker cross the line and run deep into the grass. Cringle also took victory in the second Solo Centre Championship race and set the fastest lap of the day, with Parker again finishing second. Grant Thomson, fresh from a fantastic Southern 100, made big strides in race two aboard the 1000cc Suzuki, finishing just 1.5 seconds behind Parker. Normal service resumed on the Sunday as Jamie once again won both Solo Centre Championship races from Parker with Thomson in 3rd position.
It was fantastic to see so many Sidecars at Jurby this weekend, with 11 entries thanks to several competitors staying over from the Southern 100. Famous names in the Sidecar world, such as Tony Baker and Alun Thomas, lined up on the grid alongside current TT and Southern 100 winners Ryan and Callum Crowe. The Crowes took the lead into the first corner, with Hope and Bumfrey in hot pursuit. Hope and Bumfrey kept the Crowes honest in the early laps and made them work for the win. Ryan and Callum secured victory, the first of three wins over the weekend. These results confirmed Crowe Racing as the ARA Northern Fuels, Isle of Man Open Centre Sidecar Champions for the first time. The championship-winning race was chequered-flagged by MHK for Motorsport Sarah Maltby. Another accolade to add to Ryan and Callum’s 2 × Isle of Man TT wins, 2 × Southern 100 wins, and lap records in 2025, the perfect season on the Isle of Man for Crowe Racing. In the final Sidecar race on Sunday, Stu Bainborough and Jake Roberts took the win from Tony Baker and Tom Dawkins. There was a surprise return to Sidecar racing in the final podium spot in the final race, with three-time ARA Sidecar Centre Champions and TT regulars Craig Melvin and Stuart Christian returning to the track to take third position. Is a full-time return on the cards next year?
In the Palace Hotel and Casino Supersport class, Grant Thomson took victory in race one by 0.4 of a second and again in race two by 0.3 seconds over Kyle Casement. On Sunday, with the clockwise configuration, Kyle took his revenge with two wins over Grant – the second by just 0.2 seconds. They head into the final round of the season with only 10 points separating them.
In the ARA VMCC Novice and Clubman’s Centre Championship, Rob Taylor went into the weekend leading the championship by just 9 points from Liam Wood. Unfortunately, after finishing third in race one, Rob suffered an engine failure aboard the R6, which put him out of race two and Sunday’s racing. This left Liam Wood and Alexander Galloway to fight it out for wins across the weekend. Liam gained the upper hand on Saturday with two wins, while Alex won both races on Sunday. Liam currently leads the championship. Another close championship that will go down to the wire in September, between two young riders who will definitely be stars of the future.
130mph TT man Michael Evans had a perfect weekend in the Post Classic class, taking four wins from four and setting a new lap record for the anti-clockwise configuration. Lex Geval, who was leading the championship going into the weekend, finished second. Evans now holds a slender lead over Lex heading into the final round in September.
What can you say about Francesco Faraldo? Six wins on Saturday across the Singles, Supertwin, and Singles, Twins & Triples races, and then five more wins on Sunday – which would have been six if not for a mechanical issue with the Lightweight in race one. Francesco also set a new Lightweight lap record and wrapped up three Andreas Racing Association Championships, two on his own bikes, and the Supertwin Championship aboard Jason Corcoran’s JRC Groundworks Aprilia 660. A really impressive season from the Douglas-based racer, that’s five championships in two years at Jurby and 7 in total, and he currently holds four lap records.
The very close Just Pizza & Pasta CB500 Championship produced some fantastic racing over the weekend, with three different winners across four races. Matt Davies managed a win on each day, with James Everitt and Will Corkill taking the other two wins. Yet another championship going down to the wire.
Grant Thomson took 3 wins out of 4 races in the UGGLY & Co Pre-Injection 600 class across the weekend. Lex Geval gave a fantastic account of himself by finishing 2nd in 3 races and winning the final race of the weekend holding off the 2025 Manx Grand Prix Newcomer and Southern 100 Winner Thomson. Lex is another racer who has really improved this season which show in his lap times.
Finally, and by no means least, 16-year-old Sean Crone secured his first ARA Isle of Man Championship by wrapping up the Just Pizza & Pasta Lightweight Championship with three wins across the weekend. The current Isle of Man Pit Bike champion, Sean is one of the many rising young stars on the Isle of Man, having recently impressed Ron and Leon Haslam after being offered a spot in the British Superbike Superteens class at Snetterton. Congratulations, Sean! Other standout performances by young riders at Jurby came from Aron Redmond and George Cowie. George is only 16 years old and first rode a motorcycle of any kind last year when he attended the ARA ACU Race School to gain his race licence with ARA. He now sits in second place in the Lightweight Championship. Aron (17), son of TT racer Tony Redmond, is currently in second position in the UGGLY & Co Supertwin Championship aboard his Red’s Garage Aprilia 660.
Andreas Racing Association has a number of very talented competitors and youngsters in the paddock these days, its exciting to see, and a strong sign that the future of racing on the Isle of Man is very bright, ARA really is where it all begins.
Word: Lee Bartram