Family of tragic Isle of Man TT rider Mark Purslow in emotional tribute following fatal accident in qualifying

A former Manx Grand Prix winner, Purslow was competing at the TT for the second time and had just posted his fastest ever lap of the Mountain Course on his Yamaha Supersport machine at 120.857mph on Wednesday before his fatal accident at Ballagarey.

A family statement on Thursday said his loved ones were “beyond heartbroken” and “utterly devastated”.

“Mark was loved by everyone, not one person had a bad word to say about him,” his family said.

“That’s because he was an amazing person inside and out, always cracking a joke and making light of every situation with a big smile on his face, always there for people.

“He loved to ride and he knew the risks, but he loved racing since such a young age. He followed dad and his talent was immense, he learnt from the best.

“He was getting to his peak having the best year ever with the Never Be Clever Racing team after so many years of doing it the hard way with dad as a privateer.

“We are beyond heartbroken, in shock and utterly devastated. We are such a close family and this loss is so hard to bear.

“We wanted to say thank you to all the kind messages of support and love from everyone who knew him.”

The family statement went on to say that Mark would be “telling us all to stop crying, have a laugh and a drink for him”.

“For now we are going to try and get some solace in the fact that he always told us if he was going to go, this would be the way he would want to, and that he would be smiling,” the statement continued.

“He will be telling us all to stop crying, have a laugh and a drink for him, and celebrate his achievements. We love you Mark forever and always, you were one in a million, always in our hearts.”