OFFICIAL PROGRAMME
British World Champions The Retired Royals
CARL FOGARTY - 59 RACE WINS World Champion 1994 , ’ 95 , ’ 98 and ’ 99 - All Ducati The most successful retired racer of all is Carl Fogarty . And as somebody who actually got even more famous in the UK after racing than he did as a four-times champion , he is the most recognised British rider since Barry Sheene . Still a proud son of the English country of Lancashire - hence the red rose emblem on all his crash helmet designs - Fogarty has always been both a shy person internally and yet someone who speaks his mind , especially about his rivals , with an often barbed honesty . Despite all the trapping of his success , ‘ Foggy ’ still retains his gritty and regular Northern roots . When he answered his mobile he was , as usual at his lovely home in the hills above his native Blackburn . Unusually for some ex-champions , he had just finished using an old wooden railway sleeper to support a steel sea container , levelling it up . He has just had the shipping box delivered to store more of the ‘ stuff ’ he has collected over the years in racing . He certainly collected a room full of trophies over his life ( I know , I have seen it ) but after running the Foggy Petronas WorldSBK team for five years , and then going back into a form of retirement , Fogarty finally agreed to take part in the “ I ’ m a Celebrity , Get Me Out Of Here ,” TV series , which was about the biggest thing on UK TV at the time . He won it , and became a true household name . Fogarty was certainly a high profile rider who was forced out by injury , one of many in such a tough sport on the human body , but he realised it was maybe time to go anyway . “ I didn ’ t feel that bad about it ,” said Fogarty . “ It seems strange but it was almost like the relief . I think the whole thing had become so big , the sport , my name , whatever . But a couple of years later I started struggling with retirement a little bit . I din ’ t like even following or watching racing , but I guess that could be fairly normal with people in my position , who had to quit . You see them go off completely off the rails , like Gazza and Frank Bruno . I wasn ’ t like that but I switched off for a little while .” Foggy has mellowed out hugely in the intervening years since 2000 , tweeting congratulations and encouragement to people and he ’ s far from the sometimes snarling persona he seemed . And he ’ s accepted his status as retired long ago and can now enjoy watching racing again . “ I ’ m different now , you kind of get over it , eventually ,” said Carl . “ I enjoy it but I don ’ t think for one minute I wish I was out there . My body hurts just thinking about being in that racing crouch because of my knee ! I had a lot of leg trouble in my early career and that is coming back to bug me a bit now .” Foggy Petronas , as a WorldSBK project , demanded that Fogarty come back in not long after he was forced to quit racing , but as he says , “ If I am honest it probably came too early . I felt a bit raw having had to retire from racing seeing a few others , a few Brits … I felt like I had helped put the sport right on top and then I was not there benefitting from it . I couldn ’ t say no to the Petronas thing but I would do things differently now . Then , I was not ready , but now I am a bit older and wiser . But it was a hell of a deal and I was not really enjoying my ( ambassador ) role at Ducati by that time . I think I needed to get away from the sport for quite a few years .” Well recognised in his own country even just as a racer Fogarty eventually got a little more comfortable being the focus of attention . He likes it and he doesn ’ t . “ I do and I don ’ t ,” said Fogarty . “ I get asked to do a lot of stuff and I do say no to a lot of it . I really have not got that confidence ; a little bit shy in some way . I get asked to do celebrity programmes , like Celebrity MasterChef or Strictly Come Dancing , I am just not interested in doing them . I am shy , the fame thing does not bother me and I am not desperate to be on TV . And , there is my confidence in that environment . I am still not that confident like I was when I was racing motorbikes . My self-belief back then was off the scale . It probably came across as arrogant , but away from that I always struggled with it really .” Fogarty ’ s building confidence and fearlessness in the face of snakes , insects and hunger saw him finally win ‘ I ’ m a Celebrity , Get me Out of Here ,’ and with it eternal fame in the UK . He has rejected offer after offer to do more TV but now , he has just broken his resolve . “ I have just agreed to do another TV show , just said yes the other day - and already I can ’ t sleep !”
‘ I ’ m a Celebrity , Get me Out of Here ,’ and with it eternal fame in the UK .
Carl Fogarty
EXCITING CONTENT
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