Matthews initially trained as a teacher, qualifying at Bede College, Durham University in 1974 and teaching for three years at Nunnery Wood High School before dedicating himself to motorsport in 1978. His first foray into racing was as a motocross rider, successfully captaining a UK team touring in Zambia. He returned to Zambia the following year to compete individually in the domestic Zambian Championship.
After a year running his own motocross shop, Matthews worked with Mike Hailwood and Rodney Gould at their motorcycle shop in Birmingham. Following Hailwood’s death in a car accident, Matthews purchased land near the M5 at Worcester and opened a motocross race track. In 1982, he launched the National Motocross Academy, a residential school attracting pupils internationally, including from the USA and Thailand. He became the National Motocross Assessor for the Auto-Cycle Union, qualifying additional instructors, and continued to lead UK teams to competitions in the United Arab Emirates and Grand Canaria.
In the late 1980s, Matthews launched the UK Supercross Championship, held at his Worcester track under floodlights. The series quickly became the leading UK supercross event, attracting top riders and gaining coverage on BBC’s Top Gear and through Hay Fisher productions on Eurosport and Screensport, running successfully for four years before motorway widening forced its closure. His off-road motorcycle training extended to the police and armed forces, leading to a role as a transport consultant for Save The Children Fund, teaching health workers moped operation in Ghana. This work expanded to include the World Health Organisation, with projects in Uganda, Cameroon, Benin, and Niger, and a three-year project in Egypt for US Aid.
Matthews retired from motocross after winning his final race in 1994, selling his race track. In 1995, he transitioned to car racing, competing in The Alliance and Leicester Formula 2000 Championship. Over the next six years, he raced various machinery and became an instructor, eventually racing in the European Thoroughbred Grand Prix Championship in a 1985 Tyrrell 012. During this time, he developed a television format aimed at giving an amateur driver the opportunity to compete in Formula 1.
This concept was realised as a six-part television series, ‘Be a Grand Prix Driver’, filmed by Diverse Productions and broadcast in 2003. Matthews served as a judge alongside Tiff Needell and Jenson Button, with Mark Johnson, the winning driver, achieving a 1st-place class finish at Monza in his debut race. Subsequent series were run on Sky TV and Men and Motors, with Matthews continuing as the senior judge.
Throughout the first decade of the 21st century, Matthews continued racing, primarily in the UK Sports 2000 series, achieving class wins and trophies. Following major back surgery, he became the senior instructor for SVG Promotions, a company offering motor racing driving experiences, a race team, and manufacturing their own GT race car.