BIG DJ!

It’s been 20 years since the great David Jefferies completed his last TT race – the 2002 Senior. He won it, naturally, and set a new lap record at 127.29mph, just as he had won the Formula 1 race and set a new lap record (126.68mph) earlier in the week. For good measure, he made it a treble by taking victory in the Production 1000 race, on a more standard version of his beloved Suzuki GSX-R1000.

It was DJ’s third triple at the TT in three years (the 2001 event was cancelled due to Foot and Mouth disease). That’s nine TT wins in just three years – an unprecedented feat. But the loveable big Yorkshireman was far more than just a TT racer. Between 1990 and 2003 he raced in almost every class imaginable, from British Superbikes to World Superbikes and even 500cc Grands Prix. He was also British Powerbike TT Production Challenge Champion, Triumph Speed Triple champion, and two-time British Superstock champion. Not bad for a man who was at an enormous disadvantage because of his height, weight, and sheer bulk.

David Jefferies was the end-product of generations of racing skill and knowledge built up by his family for almost a century. His grandfather, Allan Jefferies, competed in trials throughout the 1920s and won six gold medals in the International Six Days Trial (ISDT) before racing at the TT in the 1940s. His father, Tony, would win three TT races and a 350cc Grand Prix, and Uncle Nick remains the only man to have won a Manx Two Day Trial, a Manx Grand Prix, and a TT (the 1993 Formula 1 race). DJ truly