Road racing legend Guy Martin has announced his comeback in the 2017 Isle of Man TT and that too with the Honda Racing Team, who already have John McGuiness on board. McGuiness has won the Isle of Man TT a record 23 times and is considered to be one of the greatest ever to have raced at the Isle of Man. Both these greats will be piloting the all-new Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade SP2.
Guy Martin has had various road racing victories under his belt in the Ulster GP, Scarborough Gold Cup, Southern 100 and so on but has been unable to win at the Isle of Man TT. He has been on the podium on 15 occasions at the TT, though. He believes he can get that elusive maiden TT win with the Fireblade SP2.
(Guy Martin Joins Honda Racing for 2017 Isle of Man TT)Speaking to the media, Guy said, "Neil [Tuxworth] has been talking to me for a while about joining the team but I had a lot of thinking to do before I committed and said yes. I spent a lot of time on my push bike to and from work, thinking about what to do. I didn't want to grow old regretting not giving the Honda a go and the more time passes since making the decision, the more time I've thought it is the right decision. Honda is a great team and the Fireblade has always been a weapon on the roads so, with the new bike, I'm keen to give it a go. We've got a busy testing schedule coming up and I've put some other stuff off to make time. John [McGuinness] is the man. I've got massive respect for him and I'm looking forward to racing on the Fireblade against him."
John McGuiness is also looking to recapture his lap record at the Snaefell Mountain Course astride the Fireblade SP2. His lap record was broken by Michael Dunlop on a BMW S1000RR last year.
The Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade is the most successful litre class motorcycle at the Isle of Man TT. The SP2 version (Race and Road legal) has been slightly revised for 2017 with an updated cylinder head that has larger valve sizes and lightweight Marchesini wheels. The Fireblade SP2 will make its racing debut at the Northwest 200 in May, 2017.
