Carl Phillips says British championship return is top priority in 2027 with North West 200 also in his plans
Ulster Superbike champion Carl Phillips’ top priority for 2027 is to return to racing in the British championship full-time after impressing on his return to the National Superstock 1000 class.
Phillips competed at Oulton Park, Thruxton and the Brands Hatch finale as a wildcard on the Bell Bikesport/B&W Racing BMW and clinched an excellent fourth place in the final race of the season in the cold and wet at Brands.
The Lisburn rider also led at Thruxton in August before eventually finishing in seventh position and the experience has left Phillips hungry for more next season.
He has nothing left to prove in the Ulster Superbike Championship after dominating this year to retain his title, winning 16 of the 19 races held on the M1000RR.
It was Phillips’ third Ulster title after his maiden success in 2019.
The former British Superstock 600 title runner-up and Gearlink Kawasaki BSB rider was left disappointed after being denied the chance to defend the Sunflower Trophy over the weekend, when the Hillsborough Club’s meeting at Bishopscourt in Co Down was cancelled because of Storm Boelo.
However, Phillips remains committed to returning to the event in 2027 and is also eager to race at the North West 200, where he finished ninth in the second Superbike race in May after a four-year absence.
“There’s nothing official for next year but there’s just a few things to sort out, but it’s all looking very good,” said Phillips, who also took the chance this year to lap the Isle of Man TT course on closed roads, raising speculation over a possible debut in the future.
“Things turned out ten times better and I didn’t think I would ever be in this position, talking about being at Brands Hatch and finishing in fourth position.
“I sat down with my Dad and he was saying, ‘think about what you’ve done this year’ and when you reel it off… even to go over to the Isle of Man and be invited over there was mental.
"Everything has to be right and if it’s not right, I’m not going [to race at the TT].
“But the main focus is to try and get back to the British championship full-time and I think I deserve it.”
Asked if the North West 200 was part of his plans again next year, he added: “One hundred per-cent, guns blazing for it!
"That was one of the things in the deal this year because I had to get back after five years and we were pretty competitive.
“I think we can go back and try and do a good job and I’d good results at the North West, so that was mega too.”