Accident for West at the TT: “It was my mistake, I want to get back on the bike”

The second day of 2022 Tourist Trophy practice was brought to a premature halt with a red flag following an incident through the Laurel Bank section. The rider involved in the crash was Sam West, his bike catching fire and West immediately transferred to Noble's Hospital. The BMW rider is in a stable condition and has sustained hand and leg injuries that will not require a lengthy recovery, but the fire forced the organisers to suspend activity and cancel the subsequent sidecar practice session.

West: “I can be back for the Senior TT”

---

“Yesterday didn’t go to plan, as I was going really fast and was lying sixth among the Superbikes when, coming out of Laurel Bank, I ran wide and suffered a highside”, explains the Street Diner Racing rider on social media. “It was my mistake, caused by a desire to break away from some slower riders ahead, but unfortunately the bike caught fire and the session was suspended. I’m sorry for the sidecar guys, who couldn’t even make one lap”.

West remains optimistic and is already considered a flash return: “I don’t have any particularly serious injuries and hope to be back in shape soon. There are still 10 days to go before the Senior TT, so if I can find a bike, I might be able to race. In the meantime, I want to thank everyone who has been worried about me, I appreciate all the fantastic support”.

Translated by Heather Watson

TT Supertwin, a change afoot for Hickman: he’ll race with the Paton