THE FHO Racing BMW team and the world’s fastest road racer Peter Hickman are all set to take on the world’s fastest Superbike stars as the squad makes its FIM Superbike World Championship debut at Donington Park this weekend.
As revealed last week, Faye Ho’s team has secured a wildcard entry for the Prosecco DOC UK round which runs at the iconic Leicestershire circuit this Friday-Sunday, July 15-17.
Hickman, officially the world’s fastest road racer, recently returned from a strong Isle of Man TT where he picked up four wins and reclaimed the Senior TT crown to add to his ever-growing tally of TT, international roads and British Superbike wins.
Having made two previous wildcard appearances in 2012 and 2019 on machines he wasn’t familiar with, this time he will hit the track on the FHO Racing BMW M 1000 RR he has raced all season in the Bennetts British Superbike Championship and the international road races, albeit with a new WSBK-spec electronics package.
And while he is eager to see where he stacks up against the world’s greatest superbike racers this weekend, both Hickman and the team are going in with an open mind and looking to learn.
Peter Hickman:
“Obviously, it goes without saying that I’m very excited about the weekend. As someone who has done this twice before on unknown bikes, the chance to do it on my FHO Racing BMW is amazing because I know I’m going to be a bit more comfortable from the start.
“One of the best things is that there’s no real pressure as such. We aren’t going there thinking we can win, we’re going to go and learn as much as we possibly can, enjoy ourselves and see where we end up.
“The boys have had a bit of work on their hands over the last week or so working on the electronics but I think we’re all ready. I think it’s going to be a really good experience for all of us to have a go and see where we end up.”
Faye Ho, Team Principal:
“I’m really looking forward to making our debut in the FIM Superbike World Championship with Peter this weekend. It’s going to be a great new experience for all of us.
“As a team, FHO Racing is all about pushing ourselves as much as possible and exploring new arenas – and this event was something we were all keen to do. After Knockhill BSB, the team had a little bit of a break after a very busy few months, but they’ve had a busy week back working on the electronics updates and getting everything ready.
“The aim of the weekend is to learn from what will be an exciting new experience and of course, we’ll all be pushing for the best results we can. Ultimately, it will be a fantastic new opportunity for the team and we are all raring to go.”
*The Prosecco DOC UK round will get underway on Friday morning with the first of two practice sessions, with further practice and Superpole qualifying on Saturday morning. The first race takes place at 2pm on Saturday, with the Superpole sprint race at 11am on Sunday and the final race at 2pm.
