Yesterday afternoon a group of riders taking part in the 55th Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix and some of the drivers from the F3 Macau Grand Prix, Macau Touring Car Cup, Macau Guia Race and Macau GT Cup were given a tour of Macau Grand Prix Museum where some tried out the various simulators, saw a film about the history of the Macau Grand Prix and visited the souvenir shop.
The Macau Post Daily caught up with the only female rider in the Motorcycle Grand Prix, Nadieh Schoots and “The King of Macau” nine-time winner Michael Rutter.
Schoots, from the Netherlands, riding a Yamaha R1 for Basomba Racing, came to Macau for the first time last year, finishing 12th. She said about last year, “I was asked to come at the last-minute last year and as I had not ridden for three or four months I was not prepared so on the track it was more about surviving than actually racing, but it was so much fun”.
She went on to say, “This year I am better prepared”. When asked if she had ridden against any of the other riders that will be competing at the weekend, she said, “I raced in the North West 200* and Superstock** a couple of times between 2018 and 2022, but have been in other competitions against them since 2014”.
When asked if any of the more experienced guys have given her any advice, she said that they had been really helpful. Adding, “Peter [Hickman] has been a friend for many years and has been very helpful, we shall probably go round the circuit in a car so he can point out different points”.
Scoots added, “I love getting to see all the local sites and meeting lots of locals, they are all so friendly.”
Briton Rutter, riding a BMW M1000RR for FHO Racing BMW Motorrad, said, “It is fantastic to be back, but this year is a massive change for me as I have my own team for Faye Ho, the whole experience is different for me”.
When asked how he thought he would do this year against team member and great rival Hickman and new member of the team, Australian Josh Brookes, Rutter said, “They have been riding the bikes all year and I have only ridden one once before in England”.
He went on to say, “This year I have come here to enjoy myself, this is my 29th year racing in Macau, I would love to come back next year to make the 30*** but I am feeling old now, I am 51 and all the rest are half my age, so I am not really bothered about the final result”.
Rutter did say, however, that he used to race a lot but he had not been racing as much as he used to, so it is a lot harder now.
*According to Wikipedia, The International North West 200 is a motorcycle road race first held in 1929 on an 8.970 miles (14.436 km) street circuit known as the Triangle between the towns of Portstewart, Coleraine and Portrush on the Causeway Coast and Glens, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. It is the largest annual sporting event in Northern Ireland, with the race weekend attracting over 150,000 visitors from all over the world. The course is one of the fastest in the world, with average speeds of 120 mph (190 km/h) and top speeds in excess of 200 mph (320 km/h).
**According to Bing, The Pirelli National Superstock Championship is a motorcycle racing series that is held in the United Kingdom. It is a support race for the British Superbike Championship and is fiercely contested by many riders. The bikes used in this championship are of a stock specification, which makes it a cheaper category to participate in than other categories.
***The Macau Grand Prix magazine states that this is Rutter’s 26th visit.
Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix rider Nadieh Schoots from the Netherlands poses at the Macau Grand Prix Museum yesterday. – Photo: Lesley Wells
Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix rider Michael Rutter (right), from Great Britain, poses next to his waxwork model and the Ducati 998RS on which he won the Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix in 2003, at the Macau Grand Prix Museum yesterday.
Photo: Rui Pastorin
