Australian two-time World Superbike champion Troy Corser has been a regular contender for a rostrum finish at the Goodwood Revival ever since he first raced there in 2011, after his final season in SBK with the BMW factory team. We chat about his famous win there…
As a continuation of that final BMW season, he’s always raced BMWs in the Revival, but never as a genuine dry-weather victory hopeful. Here’s his take on finally breaking his Goodwood duck in 2018.
Read Alan’s feature and test on the BMW R57 Kompressor here…
AC: Troy, was it hard work riding the 1929 BMW to victory at Goodwood against bikes that were 25 years younger, and considerably better behaved?
TC: It was different, that’s for sure! The BMW had lots of power, but obviously the hand gearshift was the hardest thing to get used to. It’s actually on the right hand side of the fuel tank, so my teammate who rides the bike a lot, he changes gear with his right hand – so he accelerates, shuts off, grabs the gear, pulls, then grabs the throttle. I tried that a couple of times, and it didn’t feel very comfortable, particularly when I was trying to change gear whilst braking. So I started using my left hand, reaching across the fuel tank. It was actually easier for me to do it that way, as well as faster.
Troy on the BMW R57, lapping at record pace in 2018 at Goodwood. Legendary stuff.
AC: Did you use the clutch at all when you changed gear?
TC: No, not even back-shifting. I’d actually rev the engine and match the gearbox to it, and it seemed to work quite well. It handled OK in the right hand corners, but for some reason in left-handers it really started to jump the front tyre. A lot of the time one or both of the wheels were off the ground in turns. To be honest, it wasn’t too bad, because at least when it was jumping I could still steer the bike around the corner, so it wasn’t the dreaded chatter which sends you off the track, just an uncomfortable feeling at first. Obviously on conventional bikes, we’d try to adjust that out, but you can’t really do that with leaf spring front suspension! So we started to play with the front tyre pressure, to try to actually give me less grip, because I felt we had a bit too much grip in the front, and that was overloading the leaf spring. We pumped the tyre pressure up so it actually slid more easily, but for less time because it wasn’t bouncing, so it held the line better. That was about all that we could change on the bike – although we did change the pressure a little bit in the rear tyre, too.
AC: There you would presumably have to have a lower pressure to cope?
TC: You’d think so, but we actually went higher again to actually let it slide with the front, otherwise the rear was gripping and the front was jumping, so we had to balance the bike again. It didn’t take me that long to get used to how it was – it probably looked scarier than what it was sitting on it! I mean, after watching the race on TV it definitely looks scary, but to ride a bike like that was such a great opportunity, with that sort of power and top speed, even if the chassis had a hard time handling it. It would have been nice to just do the practice day beforehand to see if we could have improved the bike, because I hadn’t sat on it at all until Friday qualifying! Practice made perfect, though!
AC: Supercharging the motor must have given you a lot of extra power?
TC: Yes, heaps more top end, but actually acceleration as well, which is torque, and it’s got heaps of that. It’s only a four speed gearbox, so I used first, second, third and fourth gear off the start, and then I stayed in fourth or third all the time. I only went back one gear anywhere around the track.
AC: Even the Chicane?
TC: Even the Chicane. I did try second there a few times, but I felt I had to shift gear too quickly coming out of the corner, and the fact I had to steer one-handed meant I couldn’t actually physically do it where I wanted to. So I just left it in third, and fortunately it had enough torque to pull out of the bend. I was limited to where I could change gear anywhere on the track, because I had to let go of the handlebar and reach across the tank, so obviously, whenever the bike was straight and upright was the most opportune time for that.
AC: Tell me about reaching over to tickle up John McGuinness, a moment that’s gone viral on YouTube!
TC: Actually, this was payback time, because John did that to me some years ago at Goodwood, when he patted me on the back as he passed me on his Norton – we always had a speed handicap on the BMWs, until this year! I remember going, “Yeah, thanks John” as he rolled past me. So now it was my turn to repay the favour – but oddly enough, I didn’t actually know John was leading the race, because we’d had a rider change, so I was just riding the bike as fast as I could every lap, every corner, to try to make up our time handicap from the first race when I stalled it at the start. Just as well, as if I’d known John was the leader I’d have had a bit of a show race with him – but then I wouldn’t have won the overall. Still, I timed it perfectly passing him going down Pit Straight, right in front of everyone!
AC: It must have been difficult with the BMW’s cylinder sticking out, so you couldn’t get too close?
TC: Too right – I had to reach a long way over to tap him, because I didn’t want to get too close because of that. Same thing when I passed you before then, round the fast right hander – I was going to give you a slap, but the cylinder stopped me getting close enough leaned over!
AC: What happened in the first race when you lost time at the start?
TC: My fault entirely. I ran across the track, jumped on the bike – and put it in second gear instead of first – I pulled instead of pushed! Fortunately, my teammate was holding the bike and he’s a beefy sort of guy, so he pushed me to start it again, and we were lucky to do so. I only had two chances to get it push-started- the first time it didn’t quite catch, the second one I caught it and off I went, dead last. I actually enjoyed that race, because I had to ride through the field which made it a bit of a show, and it actually made me ride the bike a little harder, whereas up until then I was taking it a bit steady!
AC: OK, now for the embarrassing question – when was the last time you won a race?
TC: Phillip Island, World Superbike, 2006 – my year with the No.1 plate on the Corona Suzuki. So yes, it’s been a long time coming, but for me it’s extra special to win the Barry Sheene Trophy race, with Barry being so influential in shaping my career. For me to come here and to win the race they hold each year in his honour was probably more important to me than one of my World Championships, to be honest.
Read our test on Troy Corser’s 2011 BMW S 1000 RR WorldSBK machine here...
TROY CORSER
Born: November 27, 1971 – Wollongong, NSW, Australia
First race: 1981, local enduro competition
International debut: 1992, World Superbike Championship
Career highlights:
1993: Australian Superbike Champion – Honda RC30.
1994: AMA Superbike Champion – Ducati. First non-American to win the title.
1995: Runner-up in the World Superbike Championship – Ducati.
1996: World Superbike Champion – Ducati 916. First Australian to win the title.
1997: Competed in the 500cc Grand Prix World Championship with Yamaha.
2000: Third in World Superbike Championship – Aprilia.
2001: Fourth in World Superbike Championship – Aprilia.
2005: Second World Superbike Championship title – Suzuki GSX-R1000.
2008: Runner-up in World Superbike Championship – Yamaha.
2009–2011: Factory BMW Motorrad World Superbike rider and development rider.
2011: Retired from World Superbike competition after 17 years of international racing.
World Superbike career statistics:
Race starts: 377
Race victories: 33
Podium finishes: 130
Pole positions: 43
Fastest laps: 45
World Championships: 2 (1996 and 2005)
Manufacturers raced for: Ducati, Yamaha, Aprilia, Petronas, Suzuki and BMW.
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