For the US Navy Medal of Honour winner, see John Lafferty

John Lafferty

John Lafferty or Laverty was a sailor in the U.S. Navy during the American Civil War and is one of only 19 people in history to receive the Medal of Honor twice.-Biography:...

John Laverty (born 6 July 1982) is a Northern Irish motorcycle racer from Toomebridge, Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

 . He was champion of the Cup class of the British Superbike Championship in 2008. His older brother Michael

Michael Laverty

Michael Laverty is a motorcycle racer from Toomebridge, Northern Ireland. He is the 2007 British Supersport Champion, and has raced regularly in British Superbikes, plus occasional races in the World Supersport series and in American AMA Superbike Racing...

 and younger brother Eugene

Eugene Laverty

Eugene Laverty is a professional motorcycle road racer, the brother of Michael and John. In 2008 he has competed in both the 250cc World Championship and the World Supersport series, he went on to be runner up in the World Supersport Championship in both 2009 and the 2010 seasons.In 2011 he moved...

 are both also notable racers.

Personal

In his youth he was a keen tennis

Tennis

Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

 player. His sporting heroes are George Best

George Best

George Best was a professional footballer from Northern Ireland, who played for Manchester United and the Northern Ireland national team. He was a winger whose game combined pace, acceleration, balance, two-footedness, goalscoring and the ability to beat defenders...

 and John McEnroe

John McEnroe

John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles , nine Grand Slam men's doubles titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title...

Early career

Laverty raced motocross

Motocross

Motocross is a form of motorcycle sport or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off road circuits. It evolved from trials, and was called scrambles, and later motocross, combining the French moto with cross-country...

 in his youth, switching to circuit racing for the 1999 Aprillia Challenge UK. The early part of his career was affected by injuries, however he scored a single European Superstock podium at Imola in 2003 and finished 7th overall in 2004. He first entered the British Superbike Championship in 2005, but pulled out when the bike proved uncompetitive. He spent the next 2½ years in British Superstock, taking over a ride midseason (and ultimately earning long-term backing from the team's sponsor Buildbase). He came close to a first win at Donington 2005 and Oulton Park 2006, and it finally came at Brands Hatch in 2007. he was 5th overall in the series in 2006 and 4th overall in 2007.

British Superstock/Superbike Cup

For 2008 Laverty was entered by the Northwest 200 Ducati team into the British Superstock Championship, which allows few modifications to basic road bikes. Three days before the season started, the team discovered that the bike was ineligible. They instead entered him into the British Superbike Cup, as a team-mate to the veteran Michael Rutter

Michael Rutter

For the motorcycle racer, see Michael Rutter Sir Michael L. Rutter is the first consultant of child psychiatry in the United Kingdom. He has been described as the "father of child psychology"...

. Laverty qualified 9th overall for the season opener, and lead the Cup class throughout, winning it comfortably in the end, taking 11 class wins and 9 further podiums despite missing the Knockhill round due to injury.
He finished 17th overall, with a best overall result of 8th, although fellow Cup entrant Gary Mason

Gary Mason (motorcycle racer)

Gary Mason is a British motorcycle road racer, born 4 May 1979 in Tamworth, Staffordshire. He is the current British Superbike Championship priveteers cup champion, Mason has previously raced in the British Supersport Championship and the AMA supersport and superstock classes.-Starting out:Mason...

 outpointed him in the main class due to a strong finish He finished 2008 by contesting the Kings of Wanneroo meeting in Perth

Perth, Western Australia

Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, which for 2008 was run to Superstock regulations

British Superbike Championship

For 2009 he switches to the Hawk Kawasaki team, taking Buildbase as title sponsor. After a slow start to the season in the first event, at Oulton Park

Oulton Park

Oulton Park Circuit is a motor racing track in the small village of Little Budworth, Cheshire, England. It is about from Winsford, from Chester city centre, from Northwich and from Warrington with a nearby rail connection along the Mid-Cheshire Line. It occupies much of the area which was...

 Laverty narrowly escaped serious injury after he went on the grass to overtake and subsequently fell casing a red flag

Red flag

In politics, a red flag is a symbol of Socialism, or Communism, or sometimes left-wing politics in general. It has been associated with left-wing politics since the French Revolution. Socialists adopted the symbol during the Revolutions of 1848 and it became a symbol of communism as a result of its...

, he was unable to make race 2 due to a concussion. Laverty earned his best finish of the year at Mallory Park

Mallory Park

Mallory Park is a motor racing circuit situated in the village of Kirkby Mallory, just off the A47, between Leicester and Hinckley. With the full car circuit measuring only 1.35 miles it is amongst the shortest permanent race circuits in the UK...

 finishing 4th in race 2

Career statistics

* Stats correct as of 31 August 2010

• * Season still in progress

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

Yr	Class	Team	THR Thruxton Circuit Thruxton Circuit is a motor racing circuit located near the village of Thruxton in Hampshire, England which is used to host a number of motorsport events including British Touring Cars and Formula 3 racing....		OUL Oulton Park Oulton Park Circuit is a motor racing track in the small village of Little Budworth, Cheshire, England. It is about from Winsford, from Chester city centre, from Northwich and from Warrington with a nearby rail connection along the Mid-Cheshire Line. It occupies much of the area which was...		BHGP Brands Hatch Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit near West Kingsdown in Kent, England. First used as a dirt track motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently holds many British and international racing events...		DON Donington Park Donington Park is a motorsport circuit near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England.Originally part of the Donington Hall estate, it was created as a racing circuit during the pre-war period when the German Silver Arrows were battling for the European Championship...		SNE Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit is a motor racing circuit in Norfolk, England. Owned by MotorSport Vision, it is situated on the A11 road some 20 km north-east of the town of Thetford and 30 km south-west of the city of Norwich...		MAL Mallory Park Mallory Park is a motor racing circuit situated in the village of Kirkby Mallory, just off the A47, between Leicester and Hinckley. With the full car circuit measuring only 1.35 miles it is amongst the shortest permanent race circuits in the UK...		OUL Oulton Park Oulton Park Circuit is a motor racing track in the small village of Little Budworth, Cheshire, England. It is about from Winsford, from Chester city centre, from Northwich and from Warrington with a nearby rail connection along the Mid-Cheshire Line. It occupies much of the area which was...		KNO		CAD Cadwell Park Cadwell Park is a motor racing circuit in Lincolnshire, England, south of Louth. It is owned and operated by Jonathan Palmer's Motorsport Vision company....		CRO Croft Circuit Croft Circuit is a motor racing circuit located near Dalton-on-Tees in North Yorkshire, England. The tarmac circuit is just over long and is based on the lands of an airfield, but has long since moved on from being a basic airfield circuit...		SIL Silverstone Circuit Silverstone Circuit is an English motor racing circuit next to the Northamptonshire villages of Silverstone and Whittlebury. The circuit straddles the Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire border, with the current main circuit entry on the Buckinghamshire side...		BHI Brands Hatch Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit near West Kingsdown in Kent, England. First used as a dirt track motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently holds many British and international racing events...		Pos	Pts	Ref
			R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2
2008 2008 British Superbike season The 2008 British Superbike Championship season was scheduled to begin on April 6, 2008, however snow at Brands Hatch forced the abandonment of the day's races, which were later rescheduled. The series was rescheduled to start on April 20 and end on October 12, 2008. Starting with this season the...	BSB	Ducati	12	11	20	14	16	13	16	16	16	16	10	14	10	13			14	15	16	16	13	21	13	8	17th	49

Yr	Class	Team	BHI Brands Hatch Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit near West Kingsdown in Kent, England. First used as a dirt track motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently holds many British and international racing events...		OUL Oulton Park Oulton Park Circuit is a motor racing track in the small village of Little Budworth, Cheshire, England. It is about from Winsford, from Chester city centre, from Northwich and from Warrington with a nearby rail connection along the Mid-Cheshire Line. It occupies much of the area which was...		DON Donington Park Donington Park is a motorsport circuit near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England.Originally part of the Donington Hall estate, it was created as a racing circuit during the pre-war period when the German Silver Arrows were battling for the European Championship...		THR Thruxton Circuit Thruxton Circuit is a motor racing circuit located near the village of Thruxton in Hampshire, England which is used to host a number of motorsport events including British Touring Cars and Formula 3 racing....		SNE Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit is a motor racing circuit in Norfolk, England. Owned by MotorSport Vision, it is situated on the A11 road some 20 km north-east of the town of Thetford and 30 km south-west of the city of Norwich...		KNO Knockhill Racing Circuit Knockhill Racing Circuit in Fife is Scotland's national Motorsport centre. The circuit is located in the Fife countryside about north of Dunfermline. The track, initially opened in 1974, is long and 10 metres wide and was created by joining service roads to a nearby disused mineral railway,...		MAL Mallory Park Mallory Park is a motor racing circuit situated in the village of Kirkby Mallory, just off the A47, between Leicester and Hinckley. With the full car circuit measuring only 1.35 miles it is amongst the shortest permanent race circuits in the UK...		BHGP Brands Hatch Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit near West Kingsdown in Kent, England. First used as a dirt track motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently holds many British and international racing events...			CAD Cadwell Park Cadwell Park is a motor racing circuit in Lincolnshire, England, south of Louth. It is owned and operated by Jonathan Palmer's Motorsport Vision company....		CRO Croft Circuit Croft Circuit is a motor racing circuit located near Dalton-on-Tees in North Yorkshire, England. The tarmac circuit is just over long and is based on the lands of an airfield, but has long since moved on from being a basic airfield circuit...		SIL Silverstone Circuit Silverstone Circuit is an English motor racing circuit next to the Northamptonshire villages of Silverstone and Whittlebury. The circuit straddles the Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire border, with the current main circuit entry on the Buckinghamshire side...		OUL Oulton Park Oulton Park Circuit is a motor racing track in the small village of Little Budworth, Cheshire, England. It is about from Winsford, from Chester city centre, from Northwich and from Warrington with a nearby rail connection along the Mid-Cheshire Line. It occupies much of the area which was...			Pos	Pts	Ref
			R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R3	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R3
2009 2009 British Superbike season The 2009 British Superbike season is the 22nd British Superbike Championship season. It began at Brands Hatch on 13 April, before finishing at Oulton Park on 11 October, after 26 races held in England and Scotland...	BSB	Kawasaki Kawasaki Heavy Industries is an international corporation based in Japan. It has headquarters in both Chūō-ku, Kobe and Minato, Tokyo.The company is named after its founder Shōzō Kawasaki and has no connection with the city of Kawasaki, Kanagawa....	12	13	Ret	DNS	9	9	8	11	13	5	Ret	Ret	Ret	4	7	13	5	9	5	13	10	6	Ret	10	6	Ret	10th	130.5

Yr	Class	Team	BHI Brands Hatch Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit near West Kingsdown in Kent, England. First used as a dirt track motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently holds many British and international racing events...		THR Thruxton Circuit Thruxton Circuit is a motor racing circuit located near the village of Thruxton in Hampshire, England which is used to host a number of motorsport events including British Touring Cars and Formula 3 racing....		OUL Oulton Park Oulton Park Circuit is a motor racing track in the small village of Little Budworth, Cheshire, England. It is about from Winsford, from Chester city centre, from Northwich and from Warrington with a nearby rail connection along the Mid-Cheshire Line. It occupies much of the area which was...		CAD Cadwell Park Cadwell Park is a motor racing circuit in Lincolnshire, England, south of Louth. It is owned and operated by Jonathan Palmer's Motorsport Vision company....		MAL Mallory Park Mallory Park is a motor racing circuit situated in the village of Kirkby Mallory, just off the A47, between Leicester and Hinckley. With the full car circuit measuring only 1.35 miles it is amongst the shortest permanent race circuits in the UK...		KNO Knockhill Racing Circuit Knockhill Racing Circuit in Fife is Scotland's national Motorsport centre. The circuit is located in the Fife countryside about north of Dunfermline. The track, initially opened in 1974, is long and 10 metres wide and was created by joining service roads to a nearby disused mineral railway,...		SNE Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit is a motor racing circuit in Norfolk, England. Owned by MotorSport Vision, it is situated on the A11 road some 20 km north-east of the town of Thetford and 30 km south-west of the city of Norwich...			BHGP Brands Hatch Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit near West Kingsdown in Kent, England. First used as a dirt track motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently holds many British and international racing events...			CAD Cadwell Park Cadwell Park is a motor racing circuit in Lincolnshire, England, south of Louth. It is owned and operated by Jonathan Palmer's Motorsport Vision company....		CRO Croft Circuit Croft Circuit is a motor racing circuit located near Dalton-on-Tees in North Yorkshire, England. The tarmac circuit is just over long and is based on the lands of an airfield, but has long since moved on from being a basic airfield circuit...		SIL Silverstone Circuit Silverstone Circuit is an English motor racing circuit next to the Northamptonshire villages of Silverstone and Whittlebury. The circuit straddles the Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire border, with the current main circuit entry on the Buckinghamshire side...		OUL Oulton Park Oulton Park Circuit is a motor racing track in the small village of Little Budworth, Cheshire, England. It is about from Winsford, from Chester city centre, from Northwich and from Warrington with a nearby rail connection along the Mid-Cheshire Line. It occupies much of the area which was...			Pos	Pts	Ref
			R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R3	R1	R2	R3	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R1	R2	R3
2010	BSB	Kawasaki Kawasaki Heavy Industries is an international corporation based in Japan. It has headquarters in both Chūō-ku, Kobe and Minato, Tokyo.The company is named after its founder Shōzō Kawasaki and has no connection with the city of Kawasaki, Kanagawa....	10	7	7	8	3	5	6	5	8	6	6	C	12	10	5	9	Ret	9	Ret	12								7th*	147*