Wondering which old bike events should be added to your 2026 classic calendar? Stuart Francis recommends the Classic TT on the Isle of Man…
After a six year break, the Isle of Man authorities decided to reinstate the Classic TT for 2025 and run it alongside the Manx Grand Prix. After the weather-related near-disaster of 2024, the MGP and Classic TT were allocated some extra days to cover possible problems. Yet even with the extra days, the Classic TT ran out of time and could only run a limited race programme on the last day. Here are some of the remarkable machines which participated in the classic classes.
Historic Junior
The bulk of the entries for the Historic Junior class were Honda CB350K4s, with 36 of them making up the 45 entries. Out of the 30 finishers, the K4s filled the first eleven places, with Paul Jordan winning with a standing start lap at over 103mph.
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The first machine to break the K4’s dominance was a Greeves Oulton ridden by Will Loder, who achieved a 97mph standing start lap.
A Ducati Mk3, Yamaha 350, Aermacchi Drixton and a Ducati Desmo were also among the entries. A works dohc 30 Velocette replica, complete with girder forks and built by Phil Price and Nick Thompson from New Zealand, also finished with a 93mph lap. The most unusual machine was a DKW W2000 rotary ridden by Shaun Anderson, which set a 87mph lap in practice but failed to finish the race.
Historic Senior
The Historic Senior class had a much greater variety with 13 makes in the 47 entries. The rigors of practice and racing reduced the number of finishers to 20 machines with seven different makes in the first eight machines home. The first two finishers were both powered by single-cylinder pushrod engines: a Norton ES2 (built by Peter Lodges from New Zealand and ridden by Mike Browne, it lapped at 110.7mph), and a Royal Enfield Bullet (ridden by Joe Yeardsley, it lapped at 110.4mph).
Phil Price and Nick Thompson’s works dohc 500 Velocette Replica, ridden by Rhys Hardisty, was the only naked machine and the only machine with girder forks. Despite engine problems, it still achieved a 92mph lap. The third machine home was a Matchless G50 ridden by Dean Harrison who lapped at 107.6mph. The favourites were three Patton BIC 500s which on paper (twin cylinder, DOHC, 1960s design) should have trounced the pushrod machines, however two retired and the other came fourth with a 107mph lap.
Formula 1
One of the great disappointments of the foreshortened racing programme was the cancellation of the Formula 1 race. The field was mainly made up of Kawasakis but there were also Suzuki, Yamaha and Ducati bikes entered. The Norton WRS588, ridden by Shaun Anderson, provoked the greatest interest, with a fourth fastest (123.5mph) qualifying lap and hotly tipped to take the race. Maybe next time!
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The 2026 Classic TT will take place at the end of August. See www.iomttraces.com/classic/page/classic-schedule/
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Words and photos by Stuart Francis
