Toseland meets Melua Despite forced retirement from motorcycle racing just one month before his 31st birthday in 2011, 2012 looks bright for James Toseland. The end of his 22-year racing career has opened up new opportunities for the multi-talented piano-playing rider. In fact, it was the lack of racing commitments that opened up the opportunity for JT to take his mum, Jane, to the Sheffield City Hall in May 2011 for a birthday treat to see Katie Melua in concert.
The Georgian singer/songwriter’s motorcycle racing enthusiast pianist spotted James in the audience and invited him backstage to meet Katie. It was a chance meeting that led to Toseland proposing to the pop star during a December holiday to the Maldives. The pair are preparing for a September 2012 wedding and it’s a commitment that James confesses to being unlikely to be able to make if he was still travelling the world with racing commitments.
JT’s racing retirement
The relationship with Katie was the light at the end of the tunnel in a year that proved to be one of the most difficult in JT’s incredible 22-year racing career. Having moved back into the Superbike World Championship with Yamaha in 2010, following two seasons at the pinnacle of motorcycle sport in MotoGP, many pundits promoted 2011 as the make-or-break year for the Yorkshire man.
Unfortunately, their predictions proved true with last season ultimately being JT’s break year in more ways than one. His troubles began following the opening round of the Superbike World Championship at Phillip Island in Australia. In preparation for the first European round of the season at Donington Park, James had been on day two of an official BMW Motorrad Italia team test at Aragon in Spain when he crashed the S 1000 RR race machine.
Toseland’s wrist injury
The crash left the rider with the diagnosis of a small fracture in his right wrist, but he was fortunate to be signed off as fit to race at his home round at Donington Park. But the troubles began when, following excruciating pain in his right wrist, JT sought a second opinion and was told that if he did not undergo emergency surgery to repair the damage to his wrist that he may lose his hand.
The timing of the injury in March cast serious doubt on the season ahead for James and he was ruled out of competing at the following Superbike World Championship rounds at Donington Park and Assen, but in usual defiant form he vowed to do everything possible to aid his recovery and return to racing.
With the development of the racing BMW S 1000 RR at such an important stage, James was keen to get back on the bike and support BMW Motorrad Italia team-mate Ayrton Badovini and factory BMW riders Leon Haslam and Troy Corser. The determined Yorkshireman returned to his home on the Isle of Man to rest the wrist and start treatment and physiotherapy as quickly as possible.
As promised, he returned to racing at the Miller Motorsports circuit in Salt Lake City, America, but quickly realised that despite the several months that had passed his wrist had still not recovered sufficiently to provide the range of movement he needed for throttle control. Hit and miss results and race entries followed ahead of his full return to racing at the Silverstone round of the Superbike World Championship.
However, his fortunes seemed to be changing when he impressed in front of a home crowd by spending most of the practice session at the top of the standings aboard the BMW Motorrad Italia machine. The elation was short lived though and the combination of pain-killing injections and a lack of wrist movement saw his performance deteriorate across the weekend.
JT’s final race
Despite Silverstone having highlighted that James’ wrist injury may be career-threatening, he insisted on continuing to persevere, but an unfortunate race two crash in the rain at Nurbrgring in Germany confirmed that JT’s racing career was over.
While the crash itself was not serious, it had been caused by the lack of movement in Toseland’s wrist leading to slowed reaction times. For the safety of himself and other riders on track, a final consultation with the surgeon, led to the difficult decision for JT to hang up his racing leathers.
Toseland in MotoGP
It was not the career end that James had hoped for, having experienced many highs throughout his career, not least during his two year career in the sport’s premier class, MotoGP, with the Tech 3 Yamaha team. Particular highlights included putting the Yamaha M1 on the front row of his first GP race under floodlights at Qatar and overtaking biking hero Valentino Rossi in a fiercely competitive battle at Phillip Island in Australia.
However, the success of 2008 was overshadowed by the death of James’ personal friend and fellow motorcycle racer Craig Jones, who was tragically killed as the result of injuries sustained during a race at Brands Hatch.
A difficult second GP season alongside Yamaha Tech 3 team-mate, Colin Edwards, in 2009 saw James unable to follow up on the success of his rookie year and a 12th place finish overall was not enough to keep his place in the team or championship.
Double Superbike World Champion
The WSBK series was one that James had previously spent seven successful years contesting. He had claimed the title on two occasions, in 2004 and 2007 with two different manufacturers. His most recent championship success was with the Ten Kate Honda team under the management of experienced Dutch team owners Gerritt and Ronald Ten Kate.
2007 Sports Personality
The title win was further proof of JT’s talent in a paddock brimming with racing experience and talent, including the likes of Troy Corser and Nitro Noriyuki Haga. His success springboarded James into a new league of biking legends, provided the platform for his graduation into MotoGP and took him into the mainstream with a nomination for the 2007 BBC Sports Personality of the Year title, having secured the regional Sports Personality award for Yorkshire.
On the evening of the event, JT impressed millions of BBC TV viewers and a star-studded live audience with his piano playing skills, rocketing him to fourth place overall in the national popularity competition, often reserved for more mainstream sporting stars.
Brands Hatch double
However, one of the biggest highlights of the 2007 season for James was claiming a double race victory at Brands Hatch in Kent for the home round of the Superbike World Championship. He had vowed to strip down to his underwear to celebrate if he did the double at the Motorsport Vision circuit.
True to his promise his post race celebrations saw JT take off his leathers and throw them into the crowd before returning to pit lane to take to the top step of the podium for HANNspree Ten Kate Honda for the second time that day.
2004 Superbike World Champion
His 2007 victory seemed to come much easier than his first world championship title three years earlier in 2004, when he surprised many by beating Italian Xerox Ducati team-mate Regis Laconi. James took up the mantle from 2003 Superbike World Champion, former team-mate and former Bennetts-backed rider Neil Hodgson. Under the management of GSE Racing’s Colin Wright, James had gained experience alongside Hodgson, finishing 3rd in the series in 2003.
His 2004 victory was the first time that JT became known for his unusual championship-winning celebrations when he marked the occasion with the gift of an £80,000 baby grand piano from personal sponsor John Jones at HM Plant.
British Superbike Championship
His World Superbike success was career-changing, having preceded the move into the series with a difficult year in BSB, which saw him badly break his leg in a terrible testing accident at Cadwell Park in Lincolnshire. The injury forced him to miss half of the season, but was fortunately not enough to deter his chances of graduation to WSBK with the help of new manager and former Isle of Man TT winner Roger Burnett. Roger took over the management of James from Mick Corrigan, who had discovered and supported the young rider during his off road career in trials racing.