TT sidecar ace Ben Birchall has confirmed his new passenger for this summer’s event.
Kevin Rousseau will jump in with the 14-time winner, replacing Ben’s brother Tom who announced his shock retirement from the sport last month.
The Frenchman joins the Birchall Racing team after making his sole TT appearance to date alongside Tim Reeves in 2022.
That year Rousseau lapped at almost 114mph during qualifying with Reeves, although the pair failed to finish either race. The duo did, however, finish runner up in the Southern 100’s Sidecar Championship race the same year.
The 31 year old from Le Mans has a wealth of experience at World Championship level, with wins and podiums secured when racing alongside Reeves and Ballasalla’s Harry Payne.
Birchall and Rousseau have already enjoyed their first laps around the Mountain Course having completed several laps during the Manx Grand Prix where they – along with Dave Molyneux, Ryan Crowe and Tim Reeves – conducted tests for a new tyre supplier.
Rousseau admitted it’s going to be a steep learning curve stepping in with Ben who set a new lap record of 120.645mph last year: ‘It’s a big challenge to be next to Ben given what he and Tom have achieved but I’m really excited to start it.
‘He has lots of experience and is obviously fast. The few laps we did at the tyre test were very enjoyable and the laps were both fast and flowing so I can’t wait for qualifying to get underway.
‘Ben’s obviously been with Tom for a long time, but this is a new chapter for both of us. It’ll take a bit of time to build our speed up but that’s the right way to do the TT.
‘The key is to be confident, and Tom’s been giving me a lot of advice. I can’t wait for the TT to start and to finish on the podium this year would be amazing. I’ve done that on the World stage so to do it at the TT is my next target.’
While Tom may have hung up his leathers, the elder of the two siblings is relishing the new challenge and the new pairing are eagerly looking forward to the upcoming campaign. Ben said: ‘When Tom told me he was retiring and wanted to do other things, it caught me by surprise a bit and I questioned what I’d like to do and where I’d like to go, but the thought of never competing at the TT never entered my head.
‘The pace and passion is as strong as ever so I know there’s plenty more races in me. Doing it without Tom isn’t a position I’ve been in before, but once I knew he was calling it a day, there was only one person I wanted alongside me and that was Kevin, so I moved quick to get everything in place.
‘The passenger is as important as the driver at the TT, if not more so, and whilst Kevin may only have one TT under his belt, I’ve seen at close quarters how talented he is and he’s the perfect size and weight. He’s also a professional sidecar passenger with a skill set second to none and I know he’ll apply himself and do everything required to be ready come June.
‘We’ve been back over to the island recently to drive round the course so the homework’s well and truly under way.
‘Riding together and spending time together will ensure everything gels and we’re both upbeat and excited about the new season ahead. We know the bike is a strong package and my mindset and goals are the same as before – to do the TT to the best of my ability and be as successful as I possibly can.
‘The tyre tests showed me Kev’s knowledge of the Mountain Course is already right up there so I’m very excited about the new chapter in my career. He pushed me to go quicker each time we went out and we worked together really well to achieve that. Our pace was good and the data showed everything was working perfectly so it’s given us a valuable head start.'