German rubber brand Metzeler has signed a big new sponsorship deal, which will see it as the Official Tyre of the Isle of Man TT Races. The partnership, which runs until 2027, will see a massive campaign of trackside branding, content on the TT+ streaming video service, and extensive tie-ins across social and traditional media during the TT.
Metzeler is proud of its TT race efforts and says that the research and development which goes into making the race rubber for John McGuinness, Dean Harrison, James Hillier, Lee Johnston, David Johnson and many more top riders, makes its sports road tyres that much better. That’s an easy story for dealers to sell to road-riding customers, too – making the new deal an important one for the trade as well.
However, the new Metzeler deal isn’t a control tyre contract as in WSBK, BSB and MotoGP. Riders and teams will still have a choice of which rubber they want to use when racing at the TT.
Paul Phillips, head of motorsport at the Isle of Man Department for Enterprise, said, “Metzeler is a welcome addition to the line-up of official sponsor brands for this year’s Isle of Man TT Races. Our commercial objective is to work collaboratively to add value to the TT experience for everyone involved. Metzeler is already integrally associated with the TT, and is the tyre of choice for many teams competing in the event, with a proven performance track record. We are sure this will be a successful relationship that will grow in strength over the years.”