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After two years and three major titles, Team WFR has taken the difficult decision to have a break from competing in top level motorsport.
The West Yorkshire–based outfit, which competed in both the two and four wheel disciplines of motorsport, has made the very difficult decision to withdraw from racing following an extended period of deliberation during which all factors were considered.
Over the last two years Team WFR has won a number of titles in various car and bike racing series.
On four wheels, the team won the 2011 Speed EuroSeries, which was followed up with the British GT4 Championship in 2012. During the same year the crew at WFR played an important role in turning the Ginetta G55 GT3 into a competitive and reliable sports racing car.
The decision also brings an end to a two-year spell in the British Superbike Championship which saw the team win the Evo crown in 2011; playing an integral role in the introduction of the current BSB regulations.
In 2012 Team WFR made the step up to the new premier class of BSB where its hard work and determination, as well as the on-bike dynamic exploits of Alex Lowes and James Westmoreland, saw the team make the Showdown at the first attempt, finish the season 4th overall, win the Riders’ Cup and become one of the most respected outfits in the paddock.
Speaking about the announcement Team WFR Managing Director Myles Schofield said: “It’s been an extremely difficult decision and one that I have not taken lightly. I understand that it is very upsetting for everyone concerned, but I believe it is the right decision for the time and that it will give everyone involved with the team the best opportunity to move forward positively from the experience
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“It is not purely a question of budget, although it would be wrong to say that I could continue to run a similar programme to this year, there was certainly strong financial commitment to the Superbikes which could have resulted in another well-funded showing in BSB. Unfortunately, in combination with other circumstances, money alone just isn’t enough to do a season in BSB justice, and hand on heart I didn’t feel 100% certain that I was in a position to do my best – something I have always prided myself and my team on during my time in racing.
“I’d like to thank the various series organisers who we have worked with, including SPEED EuroSeries, the SRO and MSVR in particular, whose organisation of BSB in my opinion makes it the best domestic motor racing series in the world.
“I would also like to thank all the team, the mechanics, fabricators, stores people and engineers who don’t always get the glory they deserve. Of course a big thank you to the young gun future superstar drivers Jody Fannin and Riki Christodoulou, and riders Alex Lowes, James Westmoreland and Graeme Gowland. And not forgetting those a little longer in the tooth - Jody Firth, Warren Hughes and Glen Richards who have brought us so much success in our short time.
“I think I can speak for all the team when I say we’d also like to thank our sponsors and suppliers without whose support we would not have achieved so much.
“A special thanks and best wishes too to all of our competitors, it was a pleasure to beat them and an incentive to do better when they beat us.
“And finally, we would like to thank our fans for their support through the good, and the not so good, times.”
WFR will continue to operate as a business concentrating on its other interests with Myles Schofield heading up a much reduced team. A return to top level motorsport cannot be ruled out, though it is difficult to imagine a speedy change in circumstances that would see WFR run machinery on the grid any time soon.