Roads: Dominic Herbertson to contest Isle of Man TT with Burrows Engineering by RK Racing

Dominic Herbertson will contest this year’s Isle of Man TT with Burrows Engineering by RK Racing.

The 32-year-old will contest the RST Superbike, RL360 Superstock and Milwaukee Senior TT onboard the team’s BMW M1000 RR, as well as the two Monster Energy Supersport races onboard the Yamaha R6. Herberston will also take part in both Carole Nash Supertwin races.

Herbertson made his TT debut in 2014 and has collected 12 top 10 finishes so far, with nine of those coming in the last two years. 2023 was Herbertson’s best TT yet as he finished seventh in the opening Supertwin race and posted his first-ever 130mph lap.

Herbertson also set a personal best lap in the Supersport class, breaking the 125mph mark for the first time.

“When John [ Burrows, Team Owner] picked up the phone and gave me a call, I was only expecting he wanted some trees cutting down,” Herbertson said. “It took some time to sink in that he was offering me a seat in one of the most competitive teams in road racing.”
 
“I have been in the very fortunate position of working with the team in the past and not only do they have competitive machinery, they also have a perfect balance of professionalism and enjoyment both on and off track.”
 
“I have so many people to thank for getting me to this point in my racing career and without them I wouldn’t be looking at 2024 becoming an incredibly exciting year for me! I cannot wait to get started and seize this opportunity.”

The signing of Herbertson, who replaces Mike Browne, takes the team away from its usual direction of fielding up and coming riders. Previously, the team has worked with Dan Kneen, Davey Todd, Jamie Hamilton and Malachi Mitchell-Thomas.

“When Mike left, the cards were back on the table in terms of what direction to go in,” Burrows said. “We’ve become known as a team that brings younger riders into road racing, enabling them to find their feet and then, hopefully, move onto bigger and better things. Whilst that’s a nice challenge, it’s also a difficult one, especially with attracting sponsors and the like.”
 
“It felt as though the time was right to try a different approach and, in Dom, we’ve got an experienced guy with proven ability who we want to help get further up the sharp end. Dom’s ridden for us before, winning the Supersport Race at Tandragee in 2022 in a one-off ride, so we got chatting. He’s done the hard yards in racing, doing a lot of it on his own so he appreciates what he’s got. He knows us and we know him, so things soon fell into place.”

Following pre-season testing in Spain, Herbertson will contest the opening British Supersport round at Navarra, whilst he and team are also planning to race at the North West 200, Southern 100 and selected Irish National Road Races.