| Company type | Private company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Mechanical engineering,Motorcycles |
| Founded | 1994 asFabrication Techniques |
| Founder | Steve Bones & Mark Taylor |
| Defunct | December 12, 2023 (2023-12-12) |
| Fate | Dissolved |
| Headquarters | , England |
| Products | Chassis,Frames |
| Footnotes / references [1] | |
FTR MotoLtd was a British motorcycle parts and frame manufacturer. The name was anacronym forFabrication Techniques Racing Motorcycles.[2]
The company was founded in 1994 asFabrication Techniques by Steve Bones and in 1995 helpedKenny Roberts andTWR to build the chassis for theirModenas KR3 (laterProton KR3) motorcycle. The firm then supplied several teams inGrand Prix motorcycle racing andSuperbike World Championship[2] and in 2001 contributed to thePetronas FP1 chassis.[3]
The FTR Moto brand, related to motorcycle racing chassis production, was launched in 2009. The company constructed achassis for the first season of the newly establishedMoto2 class inGrand Prix motorcycle racing. The first victory by the manufacturer was achieved byKarel Abraham in the2010 Valencian Grand Prix.[4] For2012 season entered also the then-newMoto3 class and the top class,MotoGP, as a manufacturer.[2] In the2012 Qatar Grand PrixMaverick Viñales won the first Moto3 race aboard aHonda-powered FTR chassis,[5] while in MotoGP the company followed theClaiming Rule Teams' regulations and supplied its chassis to the Honda-poweredGresini Racing's bike and toAvintia Racing'sKawasaki-poweredBQR (also namedBQR-FTR) machines.[6]
In 2012 the company was sold for over £400,000 to theHeads of the Valleys Development Company, a private business trying to promote the possibility of establishing an entirely new motor racing circuit, provisionally known as theCircuit of Wales.[6][7]
The business declared substantial losses each year since purchase in 2012 and had stopped producing frames.[7] 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.[7]
In late 2016 the business entered insolvency,[8] with liabilities believed to be over £500,000.[7]
As of June 2017, administrators Lucas Johnson had instructed a marketer to advertise FTR'sIntellectual Property assets for sale,[9] including "Goodwill Rights in the FTR Moto Brand" and "Rights in the Registered Trade Mark and Unregistered Trade Marks".[10] FTR went into liquidation in May 2018[11] before being dissolved in December 2023.[1]