Isle of Man inquest hears of father and son's TT sidecar deaths

It was Bradley (left) and Roger's first time racing the TT as a father and son team

An inquest has heard of the final moments before a father and son died racing together in last year's TT.

Roger and Bradley Stockton, from Crewe, crashed on the second lap of the sidecar race on 10 June at Ago's Leap.

Coroner Jayne Hughes heard eyewitness accounts, watched video evidence and questioned motor racing officials.

Spectators watching the racing on Quarterbridge Road described the "split second" before the machine swerved and hit a wall.

One witness recalled a "screeching" sound followed by an "almighty explosion" and debris flying through the air "like bullets".

"It was traumatic to see", another witness said.

'Massive distortion'

The road conditions that day were described as dry, sunny and windy and no problems with the vehicle had been detected by technical teams.

However, photographic evidence shown to the court revealed there was actually a "massive distortion" to the shape of the sidecar's bodywork - which would only be visible at speed.

TT technical director David Hagen said this would have been "exceptionally difficult to spot with the naked eye".

Coroner Jayne Hughes said she agreed with evidence explaining that this distortion was likely worsened by the wind and speed at which they were travelling, in the region of 140mph (225km/h)

That may have "weakened" the machine and affected the steering.

Ms Hughes returned a verdict of misadventure.

Coroner Jayne Hughes offered the family her condolences

French sidecar driver Cesar Chanal died following a crash at the same spot during the first sidecar race, however Ms Hughes was satisfied from the evidence that the location was a "tragic coincidence".

Ms Hughes said there were no recommendations she could give to make the TT safer, "short of cancelling the event".

In closing, the coroner said she was satisfied race organisers ACU Events had made adequate changes to safety rules as a result of both crashes.

She closed the inquest by offering her condolences to family, who were present in court, adding that she hoped they might now feel some closure.