Honda opened its victory account at the 2026 Isle of Man TT with a dominant success in the Superbike TT courtesy of Dean Harrison.
A first Superbike TT race win for Harrison, the Briton was never headed after breaking the lap record from a standing start around the Snaefell Mountain Course.
Building up a lead of 15 seconds come lap two, Harrison simply managed the gap back to the competition for the remainder of the six-lap encounter to take the chequered flag for victory on the Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade.
Coming a year after Harrison – who joined Honda Racing in 2024 – swept the board in the Supersport races, his success in the Superbike TT sees his career TT win tally rise to six having also previously triumphed in the Superstock TT and Senior TT races.
“I pushed hard as soon as I could from the get-go and built a lead that I managed with good board and maintaining my focus. I carried solid pace from practice week and was confident I had what I needed to deliver for me and for the team.
“Conditions were not far from ideal, aside from some of the white lines in the middle of the road having less grip than usual. We all had to deal with the same thing though so I didn’t lose out there.
“To win a six-lap race here is something special and I’m really pleased I was able to do that for everyone in the team and for Honda too.”
On a successful day all round for ‘Big Red’, legendary road racer John McGuinness marked the 30th anniversary of his TT debut with Honda with a strong run to fifth place.
On a Fireblade resplendent in the colours of the bike upon which he raced down Bray Hill for the first time back in 1996, McGuinness proved he is still a reckoned force at the highest levels by coming close to breaking his personal best lap.
“It felt like the whole world was watching me make my way to the line today. The bike and my kit looked absolutely outstanding and it felt ace to be able to back it up with a strong ride.
“Once the race got going I settled into a pace that felt good. A standing start 131mph lap was a nice reward for my riding and it felt positive to be able to hold a strong second place on the road through lap two and into three.
“The 132mph laps were comfortable too. I left my braking late into Parliament Square and ran a fraction wide on the exit but it felt completely manageable. I had no plan to just turn up and ride round today and wanted to push for me and for the team. Sometimes that means you have to be prepared to deal with very small mistakes, so I dealt with it.
“I closed the gap to fourth place down to just over a second at one point but Josh Brookes was riding well and he managed his board just right. My final lap of the race was a 132.2mph, not a million miles from my fastest ever lap at the TT.
“The personal highlight of the race was seeing people respond to the covers coming off the bike at the line, for the team I think it has to be seeing Dean get what he deserves with such a dominant win. He delivered a masterclass today and I couldn’t be happier for him.”
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