Top Irish rider Derek Sheils in 2026 comeback with new-look Cosmic Racing team for roads and short circuit assault
Multiple Irish road racing champion Derek Sheils will be back in action in 2026 after a sabbatical from the sport with a new-look team running under the Cosmic Racing banner.
Sheils will ride a new PHR Performance-built BMW M1000RR on the short circuits and roads next season and will also be at the Isle of Man TT, where he is set to run another rider on the machine. The North West 200 in May and the Macau Grand Prix later in the year are also under consideration for Sheils’ Cosmic Racing team.
The popular Irish rider had scaled down his racing activities in recent years, making selected appearances at short circuit meetings and a handful of road races.
His last outing on the roads was at Armoy in 2023, when Sheils claimed two Superbike podiums, although he was a double winner this year in the Ulster Superbike Championship at Kirkistown in June – one of only two rounds he competed in.
However, Sheils will be back in a bigger way in 2026, and intends to compete in a mix of short circuit meetings and road races, with renewed hopes for the return of motorcycle road racing in the south for the first time since 2022.
“I’ll be back next year with a new team called Cosmic Racing, which is a company run by Irish lads Matt Crosson and Ivor Hatton who are in the wind turbine business in Australia,” Sheils said.
“We have a brand new BMW M1000RR, which is being built as we speak by Peter Hickman’s PHR Performance, and we should have it in a couple of weeks. The team will have a whole new livery and it’s going to be a good set-up.
“My plan with this team is to do a short circuit championship and a few road races on top of that – it just depends on what the schedule will be, so we’ll just get rolling and see what way things go from there.
“We’ve a little baby at home now so things change, and that’s why I had taken a bit of a sabbatical from the road racing for a while.
“I’ve been busy with work too and I was finding it hard to get the racing in or get any training done, but things have settled down a bit now so we’ll do a bit more racing next year and I’m already back in training.
“I love the craic and I enjoy the racing side of it just as much, so why not? We’ll have a bit of a shot at it again next year.”
Sheils is looking to bring a rider on board for the TT and possibly the North West 200, while Macau in November is another option in 2026.
“I’ll ride the bike here at home but then for the TT and possibly the North West 200 as well, we’d look to run someone on the bike, and also we’d be open to going to Macau as well,” said Sheils, who is optimistic over the prospect of national road racing making a comeback in the Republic of Ireland.
“I’ve been on to a few lads already and we’ll see what happens with that.
“The bike will be out at the TT, but whether we run it at the North West or not will depend on the rider, and it’s just down to getting a rider nailed down really.
“Seemingly, everything will be back on schedule this coming year with regards the little road races. There may not be the same number of meetings, but it would be good to see it back and I was starting to miss it.
“It would be nice to see everything going back to how it was before because it was a sad state of affairs for a few years with Covid.
“The likes of Tandragee coming back this year was great and that’s one race that I did really miss, especially when I saw the lads up there having fun – it’s one of those proper old road racing circuits isn’t it?”
Cosmic Racing will also be competing in the Sidecar class at the TT in 2026 with Irish duo Terry O’Reilly and passenger Mark Gash, with Mark Codd helping to run the outfit.