Ulster Superbike champion Carl Phillips and Ryan Gibson set for National Superstock 1000 challenge and North West 200 bid in 2026
Ulster Superbike champion Carl Phillips and fellow race winner Ryan Gibson are set to compete in the National Superstock 1000 Championship in 2026 on BMW machinery.
The Northern Ireland riders have teamed up with Dwayne McCracken and will also compete in the Ulster Superbike Championship and at the North West 200 in May.
Phillips is a former British Superstock Superbike rider and clinched the USBK crown for the second time in 2025 after returning to the sport following an absence of several years.
McCracken set up the Lion Heart Moto Racing team in 2025 and signed Austrian rider Julian Trummer to ride a Kawasaki on the roads, with the Isle of Man TT the top objective.
However, Trummer and the team mutually agreed to part company during the TT and McCracken became involved in Phillips’ bid to win the USBK title on the SBT Racing Kawasaki.
“Last year it would have been easy to give up but it’s what pushed me forward into doing this,” said McCracken. “I’ve always tried to be realistic and go goal-by-goal, so you can’t reach the top of the mountain without overcoming every step of the way.
“This year, I did something with Carl after the North West as a bit of a test and then things progressed from there, and I ended up helping him for the rest of the year in Ulster Superbikes.
“We built a really good relationship this year and he won the Ulster Superbike championship, he won at the Celtic Match races and he won the Sunflower, so it was a good year.
“The little team we have put together was successful this year and it was a natural thing to go into 2026 with Carl. He wants to do a bit of BSB with a competitive package and competitive people around him, and that’s what we’re going to do.
“Ryan is a friend of Carl’s and he came on board too, and things snowballed from there. They work well together, they’re friends, and they both have a desire to do well and they’re competitive, so I think we can have a good year.”
Confirming the switch to BMW for 2026, McCracken said he believed Sunflower Trophy winner Phillips would be running at the “sharp end” in the Superstock class.
“We’ll be running BMWs next year and if Carl rides like he did this year, he’ll be at the sharp end in BSB because he was incredible this year,” he added. “To come back and do what he did after having time off was spectacular, and he just had that competitive edge about him and desire to win. Our plan is that we’ll do the first four or five rounds of BSB to see where we are.
“If we are there or thereabouts in the Superstock championship after four or five rounds, then we will continue and do the rest of the championship.
“Realistically, the way Carl is riding, I think we should be up there and Ryan has always wanted to tick off the box of competing in BSB and don’t underestimate him either, he’s an accomplished rider too and I think he can be in the top 15 and scoring points as well.
“Ryan will also do the USBK Championship and the North West 200 as well, as he always does.”