Chris Burns

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Career Summary

1983 Coming from a well known motorcycle racing lineage, Chris began riding motorcycles at the age of three.

1987 He began competing in schoolboy motocross at seven, winning the North East Motocross Club Championship in his first season.

1995 His off road racing successes continued into his teens when he made the switch to short circuit road racing. In this first full season riding a Honda RS125, he won 53 races from 59 starts.

1996 Entered the British Superteen Championship for riders between 15 and 20 years old, campaigning a 125 Cagiva. 1996 is recognised as the most competitive season ever for this British Championship, which Chris dominated, setting pole position and winning all but a few rounds.

1997 The prize for winning the previous year's Superteen Championship was a Honda RS125 race bike to campaign in the 125 British Championship. He set five lap records, finished second once and won four rounds in the early part of the season before being head hunted by the German UGT 125 Grand Prix team. Here he partnered World Champion Kazuto Sakata in the remaining World Championship Grand Prix rounds before rounding off the season with a resounding lap and race record breaking win in the final British Championship round at Donington Park.

1998 Voted British Superbike teams' "Young Rider of the Year" in his first season racing large capacity four stroke machines. Partnering 11 times Isle of Man TT winner Phillip McCallen in the Motorcycle City 600cc British Supersport Championship, Chris was a consistent top ten finisher proving himself to be mature beyond his years, adaptable and highly competitive in the closest fought championship of all.

1999 The objective was to compete in the blue riband British Superbike Championship as a privateer, but promised sponsorship funds failed to materialise. Chris was then offered a British 125 Championship ride some way into the season, setting three lap records en route to winning the last four rounds before being voted "British Supercup Privateer of the Year".

2000 Entered the European Superstock Championship on a Yamaha R1, finishing second at the UK's Donington Park round, before setting lap records and winning at Monza and Hockenheim. Injuries at the Misano (Italian) round sidelined him for the next two rounds, fighting back to finish third overall in the Championship.

2001 Entered the hard fought British Superstock Championship immediately demonstrating his ability to take the title. But the team sponsor withdrew after only five rounds whilst 2nd in the Championship race, forcing withdrawal from the next two rounds. Roundstone Suzuki stepped in to offer Chris a ride for the rest of the year, ending 7th overall.

2002 Re-signing for the Roundstone Suzuki team gave Chris the stability to gain the consistency required to achieve nine podium (top three) finishes, including four wins. Such success gained high profile wild card entries to the European Championship, providing him with the opportunity to again demonstrate his prowess on the world stage. He led both European rounds at the Silverstone and Brands Hatch World Superbike meetings from start to finish, (in front of a 127,000 gate at Brands Hatch, the biggest attended single day sporting event in the UK).

The 2002 British Championship was decided at the final Donington Park round where mechanical failure forced Chris to retire in the opening laps.

2003 Signs with Harris WCM – Moto GP