IRRC organisers confirm Superbike class will be axed from 2026 on safety grounds - Supertwins announced as replacement category
The organisers of the International Road Racing Championship have announced that the Superbike category will be dropped from 2026 on safety grounds.
The 1000cc class will be replaced by Supertwins at the European road racing series, where Northern Ireland riders Adam McLean and Darryl Tweed are currently first and second respectively in the Superbike standings.
In a statement, the IRRC said: “The IRRC Management has decided that from 2026, the IRRC Superbike class will be replaced by the IRRC Super Twin class.
“There are 2 reasons for this change: The Superbike Class has become a very fast class. As IRRC Management we want to make a contribution to have more safety in Road Racing.
“The costs for a Superbike have risen sharply in recent years. Many riders have problems getting the budget for a complete season.
“The IRRC management would like to counteract and offer the fans exciting battles for positions and full fields of riders.”
The IRRC said further details around the regulations for the new Supertwins class would follow at the end of this season.
Tobermore man McLean, who is riding for Dutch team Performance Racing Achterhoek on a Kawasaki, is 21 points ahead of Ballymoney’s Tweed (Never Be Clever Racing Yamaha) in the Superbike class after the first three rounds at Hengelo (Netherlands), Imatra (Finland) and Chimay (Belgium).
McLean (Yamaha) is second in the Supersport championship, with Tweed (Yamaha) currently in seventh position.
Isle of Man TT winners including Michael Dunlop and Peter Hickman have made selected appearances in the IRRC in recent years at Imatra, while Davey Todd won the Superbike crown in 2019, a year after Danny Webb was crowned champion.