Fatalities are rare in motorbike racing, but unfortunately not unheard of.
British Superbikes rider Chrissy Rouse died after a crash at Donington Park in 2022.
Superbikes can reach speeds of up to 200mph, and the bikes used in Supersport regularly clock well in excess of 100mph.
Former rider and MLav Racing owner Michael Laverty told BBC Sport that the riders were probably reaching speeds of “about 90 to 100mph” when they crashed on the opening corner of Oulton Park on the first lap.
McLaren-Wood, who races for Josh Davis Motorsport By UGGLY & Co Kawasaki, expects the incident to impact some of the riders, but insisted they all enter the sport knowing the risks.
“I think it will affect a few people,” McLaren-Wood said.
“Most of us out there know it’s the sport we love to do and we will go out there fighting again, and avoid anything like that happening again.”
Motorsport Vision Racing (MSV), who are responsible for circuit operations at Oulton Park, and the Motorcycle Racing Control Board (MCRCB) said on Monday they are “investigating the full circumstances of the incident in conjunction with the Coroner and Cheshire Constabulary”.
“I think there are always ways to improve in safety in elite sport,” McLaren-Wood said when asked what the sport could learn.
“Maybe there were too many riders out there, I don’t really know. I’m not a safety expert, but I think it was mostly a tragedy.”
The Oulton Park event marked the beginning of the 2025 British Superbikes season, with a further seven rounds set to take place across the UK before three ‘showdown’ events.
The Supersport Championship is a support class to the main British Superbike series.
The next event of the British Supersport Championship season takes place at Donington Park on 16-18 May.
