'Quitting was on the cards' - BSB rider Allingham

Northern Ireland motorcycle racer David Allingham has said that a series of injuries caused by crashes had often led him to think about quitting the sport.

The 30-year-old was speaking after announcing that his SMS/Nicholl Oils team would receive official BMW backing for the 2026 National Superstock series on UK circuits.

He finished runner-up in his 2025 campaign behind champion, Ukrainian Ilya Mikhalchik, and achieved a double race win at the Brands Hatch round of the championship in late July.

"I came home after breaking my leg and said, 'I don't know if I can do this any more'," reflected Allingham of the aftermath of one of his crashes.

"It was really hard. A lot of people didn't realise I was really depressed at that time. It was hard to get back on track.

"It [quitting] was on the cards loads of times. My body is too sore and I just can't go through another crash."

The Eglinton rider added that his "focus is now on winning the championship" after being chosen to fly the flag for the German manufacturer next season.

"Really exciting times and I think we deserved it after second place in the championship. It's really good to get that deal put to bed.

"The BMW 1000RR is such a good bike and it suits my style. If we could make this year's bike finish second imagine what we can do next year with BMW.

"My first win at Brands Hatch was really emotional, especially having come through all the injuries and the tough times. There was a lot of doubting and not believing in myself but that felt like I got the monkey off my back."

Allingham's team provided a Superstock bike for North West 200 wins record holder Alastair Seeley at last year's international road race and says that a similatr arrangement is already on the cards for 2026.

"Alastair finished third on a Superstock bike in the Superbike race [at the North West] which was absolutely amazing.

"We need to sit down and have a good chat to Alastair and see if we could put a Superbike together for him. If he was third on the Stock bike he could only do better on the Superbike.

"Everyone on the team enjoyed it. It was a great week and if we can get that deal over the line it would be great."