Great Britain will welcome the best trial riders and teams in the world this weekend (5-7 September) when the Boughton Estate in Northamptonshire hosts the final round of the FIM TrialGP series. We caught up with organisers Jack Lee and Danny Cockshott to get their thoughts ahead of the 2025 season finale.
Q: How does it feel to be bringing TrialGP back to Britain after seven years?
Danny: “We’re absolutely buzzing. It’s been 18 months in the making and now we’re only days away. For us, it’s a dream come true. Jack and I aren’t just an events company – I run an air conditioning business and Jack runs John Lee Motorcycles – but we’ve taken this on because we’ve always wanted to do it. It’s pressure, yes, but we’ve managed it while delivering the requirements of our day jobs as well!”
Jack: “When we realised it had been seven years since the last UK round, we said to ourselves: ‘this is the moment’. We took the bull by the horns and promised from day one that we’d deliver something special. That’s exactly what we’re doing.”
Q: You must have been thrilled to be selected by the ACU as event promoters?
Danny: “Yes, the ACU’s commitment to bringing TrialGP back to the UK has been clear from the outset and we were proud to be selected as the promoter after a thorough selection process. We’re both on the same page when it comes to delivering a world-class event that the UK can be hugely proud of.”
Jack: “The ACU has been hugely supportive of our work to make Boughton happen and put on a fantastic three-day FIM-standard event after a period of absence. It’s great to be working with the guys at ACU House as they invest in the future of the trial discipline in this country. Hosting a world championship event is an important component in that process.”
Q: What has the preparation involved?
Danny: “The planning and work has been relentless for the last 18 months. We’ve been on site for the past two months solid, building from scratch. We cut a mile-long pathway through the woods, brought in a forest team, laid chippings from the trees that have been felled and even built a proper roadway. It’s about making it a world-class experience for riders and spectators alike.”
Jack: “We’ve had crews in setting up the critical infrastructure and we’re finishing our work on the paddock right now. When people see the venue we’ve created, I think they’re going to be very shocked. We’re pretty confident this will be the best TrialGP event ever held in the UK.”
Q: What makes the grounds of Boughton such a good venue?
Jack: “The gully is like a natural amphitheatre. Riders drop into it and face sheer natural bankings, rocky outcrops and very steep climbs – up to 85 per cent gradients. From below it looks manageable, but when you stand on it, it’s daunting. We’ve also built the required man-made sections for sections one and 12 in the trade village to give the fans a close-up view of the best riders in the world doing their thing.”
Q: Have previous British Championship events there helped?
Danny: “Yes, definitely. The TrialGB events gave us a sense of what the ground can offer, but we’ve taken it up several levels. When riders and fans arrive, they’ll be shocked by how much we’ve developed the terrain. I popped back home for the weekend recently and when I came back and saw the venue, I thought: ‘wow, look at what we’ve built!’”
Q: What are you expecting from the weekend itself?
Jack: “We’re expecting a fantastic three-day event that will be befitting of the FIM TrialGP Championship. We can accommodate up to 10,000 spectators and ticket sales are already close to that. If the weather’s kind, we could be full. I’d therefore urge spectators to get tickets in advance to avoid disappointment at the gate. As well as the competitive riding action, we’ve also got live music lined up for Friday and Saturday nights for campers, so it’s more than a trial – it’s a whole weekend experience.”
Q: Looking back at the journey, what does this event mean to you?
Danny: “We’re hugely proud of what we’ve done and the event that’s being delivered this weekend. It’s been hard work, in tough conditions at times, but to know we’ve brought TrialGP back to Britain and built something on this scale is incredible.”
Get tickets here