Suzuki has confirmed its withdrawal from the British Superbike Championship, ahead of the 2023 season.
Aligning with its global racing strategy – which saw the termination of its MotoGP project as well as a scaling back of factory support in the Endurance World Championship – and following the departure of the current GSX-R1000R model from European markets, Suzuki has suspended its official involvement in the premier domestic superbike series.
Over the past six seasons – in partnership with Hawk Racing – the Suzuki GSX-R1000R has won superbike and superstock races with the likes of Bradley Ray, Richard Cooper, Sylvain Guintoli, Kyle Ryde, Gino Rea, Tim Neave, Billy McConnell, and Charlie Nesbitt behind the ‘bars. And in 2019 Cooper also helped steer Suzuki and Hawk Racing to the National Superstock 1000 Championship title.
There has also been success on the roads, with Cooper taking podium finishes at the North West 200, while Michael Dunlop raced the GSX-R to victory in the 2017 Senior TT, the bike’s first appearance at the prestigious Isle of Man TT races.
Suzuki would like to thank the riders and fans for their support, and especially Steve and Stuart Hicken and everyone at Hawk Racing for their hard work and dedication over the last six years, without which none of those historic results would have been possible. Everyone at Suzuki wishes the team well for the future.
Suzuki will continue to support racers campaigning GSX-R machinery at all levels via its Race Parts Programme.
