Carl Phillips eager to make his mark at end-of-season Sunflower Trophy meeting against British championship contingent
Newly crowned Ulster Superbike champion Carl Phillips is looking ahead to the end-of-season Sunflower Trophy races at Bishopscourt in Co Down this month with renewed vigour with his second title safely in the bag.
Phillips secured the championship at the penultimate round on Saturday at Bishopscourt, where he was left with an unassailable lead in the standings after the event was wiped out by heavy rain with only two races taking place.
Both Superbike races were lost, with Phillips – who went into the weekend with a healthy advantage of 58 points over 2024 champion Jonny Campbell – following up his maiden USBK title success in 2019 with another domestic short circuit crown on the SBT Ireland Kawasaki.
The former British Superbike and Supersport rider can’t be caught with only two races and a maximum of 50 points available at the Hillsborough Club’s Sunflower finale from October 24-25, and Phillips is determined to end a fine year on a high without the added pressure of wrapping up the championship.
With the shackles off, Phillips intends to take the fight to the British championship riders who are traditionally among the line-up at the country’s premier short circuit meeting.
British Superbike rider Charlie Nesbitt has won the prestigious race for the past two years with the Hawk Racing team, while National Superstock 1000 contender David Allingham was the runner-up in 2024 ahead of 2022 Sunflower winner and current BSB rider Richard Kerr.
Entries for the two-day meeting close on Friday and no official details have yet been provided on the line-up for the annual showpiece, but Phillips is aiming to make his mark in three weeks’ time regardless of the opposition.
“I’m really looking forward to the Sunflower now,” he said. “We can put the championship aside and give it 110 percent and wet or dry, I want to give it a proper go and be at the sharp end, without a doubt.
“We’ll be going with the Kawasaki and we’ve made some adjustments to it, and made it better, and the bike is working mint.
“Especially after the weekend at East Fortune [at the Celtic Match Races], I’m feeling confident going to the Sunflower.”
Phillips was a double Superbike race winner at East Fortune in wet and dry conditions and has taken confidence from his performance, and the improvements made to his Kawasaki.
“All year we’ve been quick in the wet and dry, and at East Fortune we had a wet race and won that, and won in the dry too, so wet or dry we were confident we’d be battling,” added Phillips, who has the option of riding a Ducati Panigale V4 in 2026 for sponsor Alun Gorman of SBT Ireland.
“We were feeling sharp going into the weekend [at Bishopscourt] and I wasn’t really thinking about the championship, I was up for it.”