FTR Moto Ltd was a British motorcycle parts and frame manufacturer. The name was an

acronym An acronym is a type of abbreviation consisting of a phrase whose only pronounced elements are the initial letters or initial sounds of words inside that phrase. Acronyms are often spelled with the initial Letter (alphabet), letter of each wor ...

for ''Fabrication Techniques Racing Motorcycles''.

History

The company was founded in 1994 as ''Fabrication Techniques'' by Steve Bones and in 1995 helped Kenny Roberts and TWR to build the chassis for their Modenas KR3 (later ''Proton KR3'') motorcycle. The firm then supplied several teams in

Grand Prix motorcycle racing Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on Road racing, road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held sin ...

and

Superbike World Championship Superbike World Championship (also known as WorldSBK, SBK, World Superbike, WSB, or WSBK) is a silhouette road racing series based on heavily modified production sports motorcycles. The championship was founded in . The Superbike World Champion ...

and in 2001 contributed to the Petronas FP1 chassis. Santiago Hernandez 2011 Estoril

Motorcycle chassis manufacturing

The FTR Moto brand, related to motorcycle racing chassis production, was launched in 2009. The company constructed a chassis for the first season of the newly established

Moto2 Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on Road racing, road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held sin ...

class in

. The first victory by the manufacturer was achieved by Karel Abraham in the 2010 Valencian Grand Prix. For 2012 season entered also the then-new Moto3 class and the top class,

MotoGP Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the highest class of motorcycle road racing events held on Road racing, road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held sin ...

, as a manufacturer. In the 2012 Qatar Grand Prix Maverick Viñales won the first Moto3 race aboard a

Honda commonly known as just Honda, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate automotive manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in October 1946 by Soichiro Honda, Honda has bee ...

-powered FTR chassis, while in MotoGP the company followed the Claiming Rule Teams' regulations and supplied its chassis to the Honda-powered Gresini Racing's bike and to Avintia Racing Kawasaki-powered ''BQR'' (also named ''BQR-FTR'') machines.

Demise

In 2012 the company was sold for over £400,000 to the ''Heads of the Valleys Development Company'', a private business trying to promote the possibility of establishing an entirely new motor racing circuit, provisionally known as the Circuit of Wales.FTR Moto folds after Circuit of Wales buy out
'' Motorcycle News'', 18 November 2016, Retrieved 26 August 2017 The business declared substantial losses each year since purchase in 2012 and had stopped producing frames. Motorcycle News reported in 2016 that the new owners wanted production transferred to Wales, and had envisaged a British-built motorcycle, with a British rider, racing on a new British track. In late 2016 the business entered insolvency, with liabilities believed to be over £500,000. As of June 2017, administrators Lucas Johnson had instructed a marketer to advertise FTR's

Intellectual Property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...

assets for sale,Notice timeline for FTR MOTO LIMITED, Appointment of Administrators
''The Gazette'', 3 November 2016. Retrieved 26 August 2017 including "Goodwill Rights in the FTR Moto Brand" and "Rights in the Registered Trade Mark and Unregistered Trade Marks".IP assets of FTR Moto
Metis Partners, 27 June 2017. Retrieved 26 August 2017 FTR went into liquidation in May 2018Notice timeline for FTR MOTO LIMITED, Appointment of Liquidators
''The Gazette'', 28 May 2018. Retrieved 1 September 2021 before being dissolved in December 2023.FTR MOTO LIMITED

Companies House Companies House is the executive agency of the British Government that maintains the Company register, register of companies, employs the company registrars and is responsible for Incorporation (business), incorporating all forms of Company, co ...

. Retrieved 15 August 2024

References

{{reflist Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1994 Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 2023 Motorcycle manufacturers of the United Kingdom Companies that have entered administration in the United Kingdom