Michael Dunlop teases plans featuring Marco Simoncelli-liveried Gilera 250 GP bike

As far as iconic race bikes and road racing legends go, it doesn’t get much better than a special Marco Simoncelli-liveried Gilera 250 GP machine and TT record holder Michael Dunlop.

But that’s what we have here, courtesy of a social media post from the 36-time Isle of Man TT winner. 

Dunlop’s post includes pictures and a video of him with the Simoncelli-liveried Gilera 250 GP bike, as well as a caption that reads: “Now for something special”.

Of course, this could all be harmless wording from the road racing legend, who moved ahead of his father's total of 135 Irish road racing wins in the summer.

However, it does suggest Dunlop could be thinking of racing the bike in the future. This has not been confirmed by the Ballymoney rider, so it remains to be seen whether that happens or not.

In the video shared by Dunlop, which is part of a separate post from the one featuring pictures of him and the GP bike, the Northern Irishman can be seen firing up the Gilera 250, which also has slick tyres fitted. 

The Metis Gilera 250 GP bike was raced by Simoncelli in the 250cc class from 2006 to 2009, before the popular Italian moved up to MotoGP with the San Carlo Honda Gresini team in 2010.

Simoncelli, who raced with the now iconic number 58, tragically lost his life in 2011 when he crashed at the Malaysian Grand Prix, at Sepang.

Simoncelli fell into the path of Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards, and ultimately passed away due to his injuries. 

Whether Dunlop was to race the GP bike, or simply ride it in a non-competitive setting, it would be a fitting tribute to the Italian nonetheless, who was tipped as a future MotoGP world champion before his accident.

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