Jonathan Rea hailed his sixth successive Adelaide Irish Motorcyclist of the Year award as ‘incredible’ after he once again received the coveted Joey Dunlop trophy.

Rea clinched the World Superbike Championship for a record sixth consecutive time in 2020 and the Northern Ireland man was a clear winner of Irish motorcycling’s most prestigious accolade, which he has now won eight times in all – equalling the achievement of Ulster road racing legend Joey Dunlop, also an eight-time winner between 1979 and 2000.

The 33-year-old, whose sixth Irish Motorcyclist of the Year award on the spin is a new record, received the striking trophy during a virtual online awards ceremony after the annual gala evening in Belfast was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

A delighted Rea said:

“This is an incredible feeling. I am gutted I can’t receive this trophy on the night because it’s such an amazing occasion every January when all the motorcycling industry come together under one roof.

“I receive so much support from the fans there and I will miss seeing them all. This is an unreal trophy which will once again take pride of place as the centrepiece in my home.

“To equal the record set by Joey Dunlop is also simply incredible. He was my hero growing up and to think I have won this award the same number of times as him is hard to believe.”

Facing a new set of challenges last year when the World Superbike Championship was affected by the Covid-19 outbreak, Rea rose to the occasion yet again, seeing off Ducati’s Scott Redding to retain the title for his Kawasaki Racing Team.

He has now won the world crown every year since making the switch to Kawasaki in 2015 and with a new machine at his disposal this year, Rea has vowed to give his all as he seeks a magnificent seventh championship triumph.

“2020 was a year like no other and the World Superbike organisers did so well to run the championship safely,” he said.

“It was a tough year for me starting the season with a crash [at Phillip Island] but we hit the ground running in the middle of the season and I was able to bring the world title back to Northern Ireland again.

“I assure everyone I am planning a big assault on this new season,” added Rea. “Kawasaki have a new bike, and I am excited about that as the potential is more than the previous model. But I am under no illusions how tough it will be with new challenges whether it be a bike or a rider or both.

“We start the season later this year at Assen instead of Australia, because of coronavirus. Assen is a track I love and I hope we can start the season on a real high in April.”

The Irish motorcycling awards are sponsored by Adelaide Motorbike Insurance, administered by Cornmarket, and six other honours were presented during the virtual awards ceremony, which is available to watch on demand on the Bike Awards Facebook page and also via YouTube.

All the winners are interviewed in the special programme, hosted by Stephen Watson and Keith Huewen.

Carrickfergus man Glenn Irwin was named Short Circuit Rider of the Year following his title challenge in the British Superbike Championship, while Donegal’s Rhys Irwin was selected as the Young Rider of the Year after an outstanding performance in the British Superstock 600 class.

Jordan Scott picked up the Off-Road award after an excellent year in the British Extreme Enduro while the Cookstown 100 Club won the Road Race award in recognition of their successful running of the Co Tyrone meeting, which was the only Irish national road race to take place in 2020.

The Voluntary Bikers Group were the recipients of the Services to Sport award following their amazing efforts to support the local community last year. Over 200 bikers delivered food parcels, medication and Personal Protection Equipment to people in need during the pandemic.

Two of Ireland’s most decorated riders were inducted into the Hall of Fame: Ralph Bryans, who won the 50cc Grand Prix World title in 1965, and Stanley Woods who won a remarkable 29 Grand Prix races in the 1920s and 1930s. Woods was also a 10-time winner at the Isle of Man TT