ASHCOURT Racing and Lee Johnston are switching it up for Isle of Man TT 2023, as the team moves from BMW to Honda, and Glenn Irwins old CBR1000RR-R Fireblade race bikes.
Supersport and Supertwin favourite Johnston is hoping the ex-Honda Racing UK bikes will push him further up the standings in the big bike classes when he takes to the mountain course later this year. He’ll also be taking on the Supertwin class again in 2023, riding an Aprilia RS660.
Speaking about the change to Honda power, Johnson explained that the bike’s popularity with top-level track and road racing riders was part of the move.
“You only have to look around the paddock at both the roads and the short circuits to see that the Honda Fireblade is favoured by a lot of riders,” he said “and quite a few guys have been going well on it lately. That tells me the bike has a good base chassis and it’s a good package all round so it’s worth trying at this year’s TT.”
Lee’s last visit to the TT was a less than perfect affair, with bike troubles pushing him out of strong positions in the 1,000cc class. This year though, he’s looking forward to some more positive results, and seems happy with how things have gone in initial testing at Andalucia and Monteblanco.
“It’s changed massively since I last rode a Honda in 2018. The newer model feels really nice and smooth,” he explained. “It feels small too, and the fact it’s nice and compact gives a small rider like myself a lot of confidence straightaway. I felt really comfortable on it.”
The Isle of Man TT 2023 will take place across two weeks in May and June 2023. The event kicks off with practice and qualifying week on Monday 29thMay, and ends with the blue riband event, the Senior TT Race, on Saturday 10th June.
You can read more about the Isle of Man TT 2023 in this in-depth guide.
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