A prominent motorcyclist lost his life at one of Ulster’s leading road races as a result of his bike’s front brake failing, an inquest has heard.

Martin Finnegan, 29, was killed in an accident at the Tandragee 100 while among the leading riders in the Supersport 600 race in May 2008.


The Dublin racer – a married father-of-one – came off his bike at a section of the famous course known as Marlacoo Corner. He was thought to be travelling in excess of 100mph in the lead-up to the crash.

Speaking at the first day of the inquest, coroner John Leckey revealed there was “clear evidence” that the front brake on Mr Finnegan’s Yamaha motorcycle failed, however, he admitted engineering experts and competitors were so far unable to reach a consensus as to the exact cause of the failure.

Nicknamed by his peers as the “flying Finn”, the Irish motorcyclist was highly respected as one of the leading road racers in his field.

Prior to his fatal accident, Finnegan had earlier claimed an impressive win in the open race at the annual Co Armagh meeting.

Fellow rider Ryan Farquhar – who was behind Mr Finnegan in the Supersport race when he crashed – said he saw smoke coming from his fellow competitor’s motorcycle prior to the fatal accident.

However, the Dungannon rider admitted there was no indication whatsoever that there was a serious problem until seconds before the crash.

“All his lines were perfect,” Mr Farquhar said.

“At no stage did he have to fight and wrestle with the bike until Marlacoo Corner.”

As well as witnessing the extraction of smoke, Mr Farquhar said he noticed Mr Finnegan’s bike “shaking badly” prior to the deceased being thrown off the machine.

Stressing the importance of the front brake mechanism, Mr Farquhar said: “It is the only way you can stop the bike. If there is any sort of problem you are not going to stop.”

Mr Farquhar revealed that he has never suffered from brake failure during his race career to-date, but stressed he would have reacted in a similar manner if faced with such a scenario.

“I would have done what Martin did and hung on until the bitter end,” he said.

Former road racer Philip McCallen agreed with those sentiments.

He said: “If you stay with the bike it is possible you can take some avoiding action from a massive obstacle that might be there. It is not lost until it is lost.”

David Scott, who was a spectator close to where the accident occurred, recalled the circumstances of the collision.

His fiancee and father both sustained injuries as a result of the incident.

“I ride a motorcycle myself and knowing the way he [Martin] was coming down, I knew something was not right,” he said.

Mr Scott maintained the bike appeared to be “snaking at the rear” and the rider was “doing his best to stop”.

He said he then remembered “something large coming through the air” and managing to “get out of the road in time”.

The motorcycling enthusiast added that the accident occurred in a “matter of seconds”.

The inquest, which was attended in person by Mr Finnegan’s parents and widow, Brenda, also heard evidence from engineers associated with the Millsport Yamaha team and from a scrutiniser who checked the motorcycle before the race.

Terry Patterson, who represented the Motor Cycle Union of Ireland at the race event, confirmed the motorbike in question met the required safety standards prior to taking up its position on the starting line.

Technical steward Shaun Anderson, who inspected the bike following the accident, revealed that brake fluid was found to be leaking onto the coolant bottle.

He claimed this was due to the bike’s “banjo bolt” not being tensioned as a result of the crash impact.

The inquest continues.

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