Truelove brothers set for Daytona 200

Lincolnshire brothers Matt and Harry Truelove are set to race the 82nd Daytona 200 onboard their own Suzuki GSX-R750s, under the Truelove Brothers Racing banner.

After successful debuts at the event in 2023 where Matt secured a ninth-place finish in a two-part race, and a seventh-place finish for Harry in 2022, the pair will return in a two-man outfit aiming to improve their personal best results when the race gets underway on Saturday 9th March 2024.

Matt returns to the Floridan coast after an impressive display 12 months ago, where he crossed the line ahead of defending Champion Brandan Paasch onboard his Yamaha R6. He also finished 15th in the 2023 Pirelli National Superstock Championship with TAG Honda, who he will once again ride for this coming season.

Truelove has now fully recovered from an injury sustained in a testing crash at Daytona in October, where the steel banding from his rear tyre wrapped around the rear sprocket and locked up. Matt was lucky to walk away with just two cracked vertebrae and a host of cuts and bruises and has put the crash to the back of his mind ahead of his return.

Younger brother Harry will return to the Daytona International Speedway after a year away due to commitments within the World Supersport paddock. He completed just eight rounds of the season with the PTR Triumph squad after mutually parting ways with Simon Buckmaster’s team, before completing a wildcard appearance at Cadwell Park onboard the bike he will contest Daytona on.

He joined Matt in testing for the upcoming event back in October and January and is confident of achieving a solid result with his Suzuki GSX-R750.

“I’m really excited to return to the Daytona 200,” Matt said to BikeSocial. “It’s a special event and to be doing it with Harry in our own team is even better for me. You can’t explain the feelings you get when you’re on the bankings, it’s completely different to what we’re used to, but it adds to the romance of the event for me.

“I feel back to 100% after the crash I had in testing before Christmas, it was a completely freak accident and I’ve put it to the back of my mind ahead of the race, I’ll not be thinking about it for sure.

“We’ve put together a great crew of people that are helping me and Harry out, I have my crew chief from BSB, so I know we have the right back up behind us. The bikes are more or less ready, we’ve got a few areas we need to tidy up on when we go testing the week of the race, but it’s nothing drastic.

“I’m going to enjoy it; I’m not putting any pressure on myself but if I can better my result from 2023 then I’ll come home a happy man. I’m sure we’ll get plenty of support from home and that will spur both of us on.”

Harry added: “I’m just as excited as Matt to go back to Daytona, it’s a nice way to start the year for me and I can’t wait to get back on the bike.

“I loved it when I completed the race back in 2022, but my commitments in World Supersport last year meant I had to miss the race, which I was gutted about. I always knew I wanted to go back, and to do it with Matt in our own team is pretty cool.

“After the year I had in 2023 I just want to enjoy racing again, and this for me is perfect, we have a great group of people behind us and that takes the pressure off. I think once the visor goes down, I’ll get the ‘racer’ feelings back, I’ll certainly want to beat Matt, but for me it’s all about enjoying it and seeing what we can do.”

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