Danny Kent

Danny Kent (born 25 November 1993) is a motorcycle racer based in England, best known for winning the 2015 Moto3 World Championship. In doing so he became Great Britain's first Grand Prix solo motorcycle world champion since Barry Sheene in 1977,[1] as well as the first British lightweight class champion since Dave Simmonds in 1969.[2] He currently competes in the British National Superstock 1000 Championship, aboard a Kawasaki ZX-10R.

Danny Kent
Kent at the 2015 Catalan Grand Prix
Nationality	British
Born	(1993-11-25) 25 November 1993 Chippenham, Wiltshire, England
Current team	Morello Racing
Bike number	52
Website	dannykent52.com
Motorcycle racing career statistics Moto2 World Championship Active years 2013, 2016–2018 Manufacturers Tech 3, Kalex, Suter, Speed Up Championships 0 2018 championship position 25th (8 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 48 0 0 0 0 62 Moto3 World Championship Active years 2012, 2014–2015, 2017 Manufacturers KTM, Husqvarna, Honda Championships 1 (2015) 2017 championship position 32nd (6 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 55 8 14 7 4 549 125cc World Championship Active years 2010–2011 Manufacturers Aprilia, Honda, Lambretta Championships 0 2011 championship position 11th (82 pts) Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 23 0 0 0 0 82

Career

Early career

Born in Chippenham, Wiltshire, Kent like many others started out in Minimoto, before moving into the FAB-Racing MiniGP50 and MiniGP70 British Championships. Kent progressed through the Aprilia Superteens Championship earning success before being selected for the Red Bull MotoGP Academy and racing in Spain in the Spanish 125GP Championship. When the Academy closed Kent was switched to the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, where he finished runner-up in 2010. Kent also contested a wild card ride at Silverstone in 2010 aboard a 125cc Honda, earning him a late ride with Lambretta in the 125cc Grand Prix world championship that year.

125cc/Moto3 World Championship

Kent at the 2010 British Grand Prix

Kent entered the 125cc world championship with Lambretta in 2010 at the Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi, qualifying in 16th place, a big improvement on 29th in which he qualified for the British round earlier that year – however he retired from the race. He took a best qualifying position of 10th at the Portuguese Grand Prix in Estoril and a best and only race finish of 21st at Phillip island during the Australian Grand Prix.

For 2011, Kent switched to the Red Bull Ajo Aprilia team to compete in his first full season in the 125cc world championship. Kent enjoyed a successful first season scoring 82 points with a best finish of fourth place, on the way to 11th in the championship standings.

2012 was the start of the Moto3 class. The new formula would use four-stroke 250cc engines apposed to the two-stroke 125cc engines of the class it was replacing. Kent remained with the Red Bull Ajo team however the team switched to running KTM motorcycles spearheading the factory's assault on the title. The team had a fantastic year with Kent's teammate Sandro Cortese taking the world championship along with Kent himself taking fourth in the championship. Kent earned his first podium at Assen in the Dutch TT, and he took his first win at the Japanese Grand Prix at Twin Ring Motegi with a great last lap a result he followed up in similar fashion just four rounds later at the final Grand Prix of the season in Valencia with a brave last corner overtake on Cortese earning him his second Grand Prix victory.

Moto2 World Championship

For 2013, Kent raced with Tech 3 in the Moto2 category alongside fellow Moto3 graduate Louis Rossi. Kent's season started with a run to 18th place in Qatar, he scored his first points at round six with a 13th-place finish in Catalunya. Kent scored points on four more occasions with a best of 12th at both the Czech and Malaysian races, and had a strong end to season with three consecutive point-scoring finishes before breaking his collarbone in the warm-up for the Japanese Grand Prix, ruling him out for the rest of the season.

Return to Moto3

Having been originally announced to remain in Moto2 with Tech 3, Kent returned to Moto3 for 2014; he competed with the Ajo Motorsport team, riding a Husqvarna-branded KTM.

For 2015, Kent moved to the Leopard sponsored Kiefer Racing squad, running Hondas.[3] Kent's season started off well, reaching the podium at the first race in Qatar and taking his first win for Leopard in the following race at the Circuit of the Americas.[4] Kent won the next two races – the first British rider to win successive races in the lightweight class since Barry Sheene in 1971[5] – in Argentina and at Jerez to open up a championship lead. He added further victories in Catalunya, the Sachsenring and his home event at Silverstone.

He led the championship by twenty-four points ahead of Miguel Oliveira, with one race remaining. Despite Oliveira winning the final race in Valencia, a ninth-place finish was enough for Kent to claim the championship and become Great Britain's first Grand Prix motorcycle world champion since Barry Sheene in 1977.[6]

Return to Moto2

On 27 September 2015, it was announced that Kent would be moving up to the Moto2 class for the 2016 season, with his Leopard Racing team.[7] He was joined in the team by his Moto3 championship rival Miguel Oliveira.[8]

Kent walked out on his team after just three races into the season,[9] and was without a ride for much of the remainder, with a wildcard ride in Moto3 and acting as an occasional replacement for injured riders in Moto2, before signing with a new team Speed Up Racing in Moto2 for the 2018 season.[10]

Kent was sacked by Speed Up in late September 2018, with five races remaining, due to poor performances.[11]

British Superbike Championship

Kent secured an entry riding Halsall Racing's Suzuki GSX-R1000 for the Brands Hatch final round of the 2018 British Superbike Championship in October after a successful test.[12] He failed to finish in two races,[13][14] but finished in position 12 from 15 finishers in race three.[15] The team subsequently folded after principal Martin Halsall withdrew funding.[16]

In late May 2019, it was announced that Kent would ride in British Superbikes on an ex-Leon Camier 2016 MV Agusta F4, starting from the July event at Snetterton.[17][18] Kent failed to finish a race at Snetterton,[19] but achieved 18th place in BSB race 2 at Thruxton in August.[20] His employment was terminated by his team in mid-August due to a court conviction.[21]

Personal life

Kent also became part of the Phil Burgan Race Academy (PBRA) – a programme for developing British talent in motorcycle sport, under the guidance of James Toseland. The aim of the programme is to provide support, both financial and consultative, to promising British motorcycle racers and teams of the future.

In August 2019 Kent received a four-month suspended prison sentence for carrying a knife in a public place during an altercation in March, 2019.[22] This resulted in his superbike team terminating his contract, with Gino Rea named as interim replacement.[21]

Career statistics

Career highlights

• 2001 – Welsh Minimoto – Debut and first win.
• 2004 – FAB-Racing MiniGP50 British Championship (2nd Overall)
• 2005 – FAB-Racing MiniGP70 British Championship (1st Overall)
• 2007 – British Aprilia Superteens Championship.
• 2008 – Invited into Red Bull MotoGP Academy and contested Spanish CEV 125GP (9th overall)
• 2009 – Academy closed – transferred to the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup (4th overall, 1 win)
• 2010 – Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup (2nd overall, 2 wins)
• 2015 – Moto3 World Champion (6 wins)

Grand Prix motorcycle racing

By season

Season	Class	Motorcycle	Team	Race	Win	Podium	Pole	FLap	Pts	Plcd	WCh
2010	125cc	Honda	Aztec Grand Prix	1	0	0	0	0	0	NC	–
		Lambretta	Lambretta Reparto Corse	5	0	0	0	0	0
2011	125cc	Aprilia	Red Bull Ajo Motorsport	17	0	0	0	0	82	11th	–
2012	Moto3	KTM	Red Bull KTM Ajo	17	2	3	1	1	154	4th	–
2013	Moto2	Tech 3	Tech 3	15	0	0	0	0	16	22nd	–
2014	Moto3	Husqvarna	Red Bull Husqvarna Ajo	18	0	2	1	0	129	8th	–
2015	Moto3	Honda	Leopard Racing	18	6	9	5	3	260	1st	1
2016	Moto2	Kalex	Leopard Racing	17	0	0	0	0	35	22nd	–
2017	Moto2	Suter	Kiefer Racing	3	0	0	0	0	3	33rd	–
			Dynavolt Intact GP	0	0	0	0	0
		Kalex	CarXpert Interwetten	1	0	0	0	0
	Moto3	KTM	Red Bull KTM Ajo	2	0	0	0	0	6	32nd	–
2018	Moto2	Speed Up	Speed Up Racing	13	0	0	0	0	8	25th	–
Total				126	8	14	7	4	693		1

By class

Class	Seasons	1st GP	1st Pod	1st Win	Race	Win	Podiums	Pole	FLap	Pts	WChmp
125cc	2010–2011	2010 Great Britain			23	0	0	0	0	82	0
Moto3	2012, 2014–2015, 2017	2012 Qatar	2012 Netherlands	2012 Japan	55	8	14	7	4	549	1
Moto2	2013, 2016–2018	2013 Qatar			48	0	0	0	0	62	0
Total	2010–2018				126	8	14	7	4	693	1

Races by year

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Class	Bike	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	Pos	Pts
2010	125cc	Honda	QAT	SPA	FRA	ITA	GBR Ret	NED	CAT	GER	CZE	IND	RSM	ARA								NC	0
		Lambretta													JPN Ret	MAL Ret	AUS 21	POR NC	VAL Ret
2011	125cc	Aprilia	QAT 13	SPA 4	POR 15	FRA 17	CAT 11	GBR 10	NED 6	ITA 15	GER 9	CZE Ret	IND 13	RSM 6	ARA 6	JPN 9	AUS 22	MAL 10	VAL 17			11th	82
2012	Moto3	KTM	QAT 8	SPA Ret	POR 8	FRA Ret	CAT 20	GBR 6	NED 3	GER Ret	ITA 5	IND 12	CZE 7	RSM 12	ARA 4	JPN 1	MAL 6	AUS 5	VAL 1			4th	154
2013	Moto2	Tech 3	QAT 18	AME 17	SPA 26	FRA 15	ITA 21	CAT 13	NED 19	GER Ret	IND 22	CZE 12	GBR 18	RSM 18	ARA 15	MAL 12	AUS 13	JPN DNS	VAL			22nd	16
2014	Moto3	Husqvarna	QAT 13	AME 8	ARG 9	SPA 11	FRA 13	ITA 15	CAT 17	NED 8	GER 5	IND 12	CZE 3	GBR 9	RSM 12	ARA 3	JPN 6	AUS 20	MAL 4	VAL 4		8th	129
2015	Moto3	Honda	QAT 3	AME 1	ARG 1	SPA 1	FRA 4	ITA 2	CAT 1	NED 3	GER 1	IND 21	CZE 7	GBR 1	RSM 6	ARA Ret	JPN 6	AUS Ret	MAL 7	VAL 9		1st	260
2016	Moto2	Kalex	QAT 6	ARG 16	AME Ret	SPA Ret	FRA 19	ITA 14	CAT Ret	NED 14	GER DNS	AUT 12	CZE 7	GBR 15	RSM Ret	ARA 29	JPN Ret	AUS Ret	MAL 18	VAL 9		22nd	35
2017	Moto2	Suter	QAT 13	ARG Ret	AME DNS	SPA							AUT DNS	GBR	RSM	ARA	JPN	AUS	MAL	VAL		33rd	3
		Kalex						ITA Ret	CAT	NED
	Moto3	KTM					FRA 10				GER Ret	CZE										32nd	6
2018	Moto2	Speed Up	QAT 17	ARG 12	AME Ret	SPA Ret	FRA 21	ITA Ret	CAT 21	NED Ret	GER Ret	CZE Ret	AUT 12	GBR C	RSM Ret	ARA Ret	THA	JPN	AUS	MAL	VAL	25th	8

References

1. "Oliveira wins race but Kent takes Moto3 title". MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. 8 November 2015. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
2. Lewis, Lisa (8 November 2015). "Oliveira wins the race, Kent takes the title". Crash.net. Crash Media Group. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
3. Birt, Matthew (19 September 2014). "Danny Kent confident Honda will suit style in Moto3 season". Motor Cycle News. Bauer Media Group. Retrieved 11 October 2015.
4. Lewis, Lisa (12 April 2015). "Flawless Kent rules supreme in Austin". Crash.net. Crash Media Group. Retrieved 11 October 2015.
5. "British riders break records in Argentina". MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. 12 April 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2015. Danny Kent is the first British rider to win back-to-back races in the lightweight-class (Moto3/125cc) since 1971 when Barry Sheene won at the Swedish 125cc GP at Anderstorp and then a week later won the Finnish GP at Imatra.
6. "Danny Kent becomes first British motorcycle GP world champion since Sheene". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Reuters. 8 November 2015. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
7. "Kent moves to Moto2 with Leopard Racing". MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. 27 September 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
8. "Miguel Oliveira to Moto2 with Leopard Racing". MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. 13 September 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
9. Moto2: Kent parts ways with Kiefer Racing Motorcycle News, 24 April 2017. Retrieved 28 February 2018
10. Danny Kent signs with Speed Up from 2018 MotoGP.com Retrieved 28 February 2018
11. Danny Kent confirms Speed Up departure Motorsport Week, 30 September 2018. Retrieved 30 September 2018
12. Brands BSB finale: Kent confirmed with Halsall Suzuki Bikesport News, 11 October 2018. Retrieved 12 October 2018
13. Race one, British Superbikes - 12th-14th October - Brands Hatch - 2018 TSL timing. Retrieved 15 October 2018
14. Race two, British Superbikes - 12th-14th October - Brands Hatch - 2018 TSL timing. Retrieved 15 October 2018
15. Race three British Superbikes - 12th-14th October - Brands Hatch - 2018 TSL timing. Retrieved 15 October 2018
16. Halsall Racing withdraws from British superbikes Retrieved 28 July 2019
17. Danny Kent back in BSB with MV Agusta Paramatta crash.net, 28 May 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2019
18. Kent's comeback: MV Agusta return to Bennetts BSB from Snetterton britishsuperbikes.com Retrieved 28 July 2019
19. Redding in control after Bridewell tumbles from lead crash.net, 21 July 2019. Retrieved 28 July 2019
20. Thruxton BSB - Race Results (2) crash.net 4 August 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019
21. Gino Rea to ride the Bike Devil MV Agusta at Cadwell bikedevil.net Retrieved 17 August 2019
22. Danny Kent: World champion admits carrying knife during scuffle BBC News, 15 August 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2019

External links

• Official website