Irish rider Kevin Keyes to make TT debut

25-year-old 'extremely excited' to race on the Island

Irish rider Kevin Keyes will make his Isle of Man TT debut at this year's races.

The 25-year-old will ride the Daracore Racing Yamaha in the Superbike, Superstock and Senior Races, and will also be on Yamaha machinery in the Supersport class.

Keyes made his road racing debut in 2022, and is a race winner in the National Junior Superstock Championship.

He recently visit the Isle of Man for the first time to familiarise himself with the course, completing laps with TT Rider Liaison Officers John Barton and Richard 'Milky' Quayle.

Keyes said: "I’m extremely excited to be making my TT debut later this year and the work is well underway to be as best prepared as possible. Watching the onboard videos doesn’t fully prepare you for seeing the Mountain Course in real though, as there are so many undulations and climbs you can’t see on the TV.”

"The laps with Johnny [Barton] and [Richard] Milky [Quayle] have been of great benefit though, so I’ll head back to the Island again in the coming months as I want my knowledge to the best it possibly can. Michael Sweeney has been a great mentor for my roads journey so far, so there will be plenty of support and advice available to me from him, too.”

“I really fell in love with road racing that first time at Walderstown. I surprised myself with the wins but now seems the right time to take it a bit further. I considered doing the Manx Grand Prix but there perhaps would have been a bit more pressure to perform there, so I’m delighted that the opportunity to come straight to the TT was there. Everyone will be concentrating on Hickman, Dunlop and McGuinness, so I can just go about the event almost unknown!”

“The Supersport class is the one I have the most experience in having ridden the 600cc bikes for seven years, but I’ve adapted well to the big bike and I’m learning all the time. I’m not focusing on the results in my first year though, it’s all about making the most of the track time available in every session and enjoying my first TT."