Niall went from digging holes for the council to being Freddie Spencer’s team mate in five years. In his GP career he scored seven podiums and 28 top-fives. And after 10 years in Grand Prix he returned to the UK and won three consecutive BSB titles
In 1998 the fiercest battle between two team-mates took place in British Superbikes. Niall Mackenzie and Steve Hislop set the racing scene alight with their increasingly vicious clashes
The Yamaha R1 promises to be a genuine breakthrough, making use of a crossplane crankshaft developed in MotoGP to deliver smooth, even power. Will this radical new technology put the R1 ahead of Honda’s awesome current-generation Fireblade?
Niall brushes elbows with Troy Bayliss at the launch of Ducati’s new big-bore superbike. It’s a monster machine that will put hairs on the inside of your eyelids, let alone your chest...