Rapidly rising road race star Dan Cooper will once again team up with Cornwall-based Centurion Racing for the three major International road races in 2013 as they contest the Isle of Man TT, Vauxhall International North West 200 and Ulster Grand Prix.
Cooper, from Stroud in Gloucestershire, followed up his four bronze replicas on his debut in 2011 with a sensational performance at last year's festival as he picked up three bronze and a silver replica. Just for good measure, Dan clinched second in the Privateer's Championship and the prestigious Joe Craig Trophy, awarded to the British rider with the best performance on a British machine.
Now Cooper and the South West's only team to race the roads and which had five successful years in the British Supersport Championship, including many successes with Dan, will be returning to tackle all six main solo races with a Honda Fireblade for the Superbike and Senior TTs as well as a production version for the Superstock TT, both Supersport races aboard a 675cc Triumph and a 650cc Kawasaki for the new Lightweight class.
On his debut in 2011, the former British 125GP champion recorded an amazing lap of 122.583mph in the Senior TT en route to 24th place but really shot to prominence in 2012 when he recorded a 19th place in the Superbike TT to up his best lap to 123.654mph on a Honda Fireblade.
A 24th place in the Superstock TT on the Honda lapping at 122.623mph was followed up by two amazing rides aboard the 675cc Triumph in the Supersport races, claiming 11th overall at 120.634mph in the first race before a best lap of 121.674mph saw him claim a fantastic top ten finish and with it, his first coveted silver replica.
Sadly the Senior TT was cancelled meaning 'Ferret' couldn't add to his performance but the 25-year-old is relishing the prospect of competing on the world-famous 37.73-mile course which gets underway on Saturday 25th May.
In addition, Cooper will also contest the Ulster Grand Prix as well as the Manx Grand Prix later in the season, the latter as team-mate to Guy Martin. Before venturing over to the Isle of Man, Dan will contest the Vauxhall International North West 200 which takes place between May 12th and 18th on the 9.5-mile triangle on the North Antrim coast in Northern Ireland. Last year saw Dan make his debut on the event so he'll be looking to improve on his best result which was a superb tenth place finish in the second Supersport race.
Paul Rees, Team Principal: "For 2013, we have all the team attire, bikes and the race truck in new livery with H4H (Help for Heroes) logos so are very proud to 'fly the flag' for them at the Isle of Man TT again this year. We now have the 18-tonne race truck for this year and we also have another new Honda Fireblade for Dan to ride in the Superbike and Senior TTs. Dan has always impressed me ever since he first joined Centurion for the British Supersport series. He has a good riding style that combines smoothness and aggression and this is a good combination for the road races such as the NW200 and the TT. We have a small professional team that is always looking for perfection and with Dan's ability to ride the road circuits we should be on our way to finding even greater success. Dan has only competed in the NW200 once before and came away with outstanding results. This year at the TT will only be the third year for Dan and the team and we are aiming to improve on the results from last year where Dan succeeded in getting his first silver replica trophy. We definitely have a lot to learn but that is what this is all about and we are definitely looking forward to it. The organisers of the TT were brilliant last year ensuring that the team's arrival over there was hassle free, the organisation, set up in the paddock and the races was outstanding. It is true what people say about TT riders having something special about them which is why they race the circuit with a mature, professional approach at outstanding speeds over normal roads. This is why we have Dan Cooper in Centurion Racing."
Dan Cooper: "I'm really looking forward to the North West 200, TT and Ulster Grand Prix as these are my main priorities for this year so I just can't wait to get started. The team are pushing the boat out for me this year and we are entering six races at the TT which means it's going to be a busy fortnight. They are building me a Superbike so that will be the first time I've raced round there on slicks and hopefully we can lap in excess of 125mph on that. I'm hoping to improve on my top ten in the Supersport race also but the faster you go, the harder it is to find that little extra time. I'm hoping I can get a couple of good results at the North West 200 and Ulster Grand Prix also, as I led a race at Dundrod last year, and then later in the year I'll be teaming up with Guy Martin at the Manx Grand Prix so how good is that!?"
As in previous seasons, Centurion Racing will continue to show their support for Help for Heroes, their chosen charity, by displaying H4H logos on the bikes and team attire. Team Principal Paul Rees, who spent 20 years in Her Majesty's Royal Marine Commandos, was given permission to have the bikes carry the H4H logos in order to encourage the public to be more aware of this charity that supports our Armed Forces, many of whom are making daily sacrifices in Afghanistan.
Centurion Racing would specially like to thank Arai, FTR, GPR Racewear, Dunlop, RichArt, R2 Logo Print & Embroidery, Akrapovic, SW Commercials, 2K Coachworks and Daytona for personally supporting Dan, and all our friends and followers.
