Farquhar and Amor to race at TT 2014

'My heart is still very much in the TT and I want to be part of what happens on the track again' - Ryan Farquhar

18 Dec 2013

Ryan Farquhar and Keith Amor will come out of retirement to compete at the Isle of Man TT next year.

The pair will ride in the Lightweight TT race on identical Kawasaki ER6 Supertwin machines prepared under Farquhar's KMR Racing banner.

Farquhar quit road racing in 2012 after his uncle was killed in a crash at the Manx Grand Prix while competing on one of the Northern Ireland star's machines, while Amor was forced to call time on his career in 2011 due to a shoulder injury sustained in a spill at the TT.

The pair were previously fierce rivals at the Irish national road race meetings but have now teamed up to form a strong line-up to challenge for TT honours next June in the Bikesocial.co.uk Lightweight event, which will be held over three laps of the Mountain Course.

Farquhar, who won the inaugural Lightweight race for Supertwin machines in 2012, is looking forward to the challenge, although he has no plans to return to racing on a full-time basis and intends to focus solely on the Supertwin class.

"My heart is still very much in the TT and I want to be part of what happens on the track again. I also want to develop the KMR ER6 Kawasaki package further and the best way to do that is to ride the bike myself so I can fully evaluate the changes I'm making," said the three-time TT winner.

"But the deciding factor for me was to have the opportunity to team up with Keith Amor. Keith was the hardest rider I have ever ridden against and I have always had the upmost respect for him as a rider and a person. I am delighted to be welcoming him to KMR Kawasaki."

Former Honda TT Legends rider Amor will make his debut on a Supertwin machine and like Farquhar, the Scotsman will focus his efforts on the 650cc machine.

"When Ryan called me with this opportunity it didn't take long to say yes. Ryan and I have always had a lot of mutual respect from our days racing together in Ireland and I know better than most how good a bike he can build," said Amor, who finished on the rostrum at the TT five times between 2008 and 2011.

"I've never ridden a Supertwin machine but I guess if you are ever going to ride one, they don't come much better than a KMR machine. I'm looking forward to getting back out on the TT Course with no pressure and just concentrating on having lots of fun."

Farquhar hinted that both riders may also compete at the North West 200 and a limited number of Irish road races if terms can be agreed with the organisers.