TJ Alberto is the 2023 Philippine Superbike Champion after a dramatic season finale at the Clark International Speedway.

The win sees TJ, who was the champion in both 2021 and 2022 made it a hat trick in a thrilling race two which saw him and his title rival collide, with TJ managing to stay on board to clinch the series by just 1.5 points after he crossed the line to win the final race of the year only to be penalized for the incident that saw his nearest challenger for the crown crash out.

A crash in race one saw TJ remount to finish fourth at the flag, although he was deemed to have jumped the start and was demoted to fifth, meaning it all came down to the final race.

A win in controversial way is still a win nevertheless and TJ reflects fondly on the achievements of him and his Access Plus Racing squad who remain undefeated as PSBK Superbike Champions for three consecutive years, something never achieved by anyone in the series before.

TJ will announce his 2024 plans in due course.

TJ Alberto:

“Coming into the final race weekend of the year we were confident that we could keep the title fight alive, but we knew we had work to go. Losing in the penultimate round at Batangas was actually the best thing that could have happened to us as it helped us regroup and come back stronger. We had a test before the last round, and we were able to match the lap record prior to the weekend getting under way. We took Pole Position with a new lap record. In race one I dropped the ball by crashing and the hopes of keeping the title were slim. We had to start race two from fifth on the grid after a penalty. The goal was to win the race and just see what happened. I won the race and the title which was a fairytale ending. I am so happy to win my third title in a row and it has been incredible since I returned to the national superbike series, and I never expected so much success. Kudos to Lawrence, my team mate who also won in his category. It was nice to ride with Troy, my brother who took the win in Race 2 after my penalty. I have no idea what I will do next year but we are looking at some options and will announce our plans shortly.”