Ben Birchall has confirmed he will go ahead and defend his Sidecar TT title at the 2024 Isle of Man TT despite brother and fellow record-breaker Tom Birchall announcing his immediate retirement from motorsport.

The dominant force in Sidecar competition on the roads, the Birchalls have been the pairing to beat on the Mountain Course for the past decade, during which they’ve accumulated 14 victories.

However, the ‘dream team’ is to split ahead of the 2024 racing season with Tom - the passenger to driver Ben in their Wyckham Blackwell LCR Honda machine - confirming he will step away from racing with immediate effect.

Despite this, Ben Birchall says he has no plans to stop competing and intends to defend his Sidecar TT title in 2024 with a new passenger competing alongside him.

“I can only thank him [Tom] for what he’s done,” he said. “Racing together has been our way of life for so long now that, in a way, you take it for granted. 

“It’s only now that Tom’s decided to step away that I’ve been able to appreciate what an incredible career he’s had.”

“It will feel totally different and take time to get used to competing without him, but I’m still totally committed to racing and so it’s the start of a new and exciting chapter.”

“It genuinely has been a journey, racing all around the world plus all the development of the bikes that people won’t see, too. None of it would have been possible without Tom. 

“We’ve made history and to have done that with my brother has just made it even more special.”

The Birchalls currently rank sixth on the all-time TT winners’ list with 14 victories, just three shy of the Sidecar class’ winningest rider, Dave Molyneux, while they hold the current Mountain Course lap record for a Sidecar at 120.645mph.