Honda TT legends focus on the positives

The Honda TT Legends team is keeping its focus firmly on the positive elements of last night’s Albacete 8-hour race despite being forced to retire from the event in the final 50 minutes.

Provisional fifth position for Honda TT legends

The Honda TT Legends began the second round of the 2011 Endurance World Championship at the Circuito Albacete in Spain today by securing fifth position overall in the first qualifying session.

Honda TT Legends aim to improve at Albacete

The Honda TT Legends team heads to Spain this week for the second round of the 2011 Endurance World Championship. The “8 horas Nocturnas of Albacete” will run from 6pm on Saturday 21 May until 2am on Sunday 22 May.

An impressive start to its EWC campaign at the Bol d’Or 24-hour last month saw the Honda TT Legends place fifth out of 53. Although the team is taking nothing for granted, the aim at Albacete will be improving on that position. John McGuinness and Steve Plater will compete in the race with Keith Amor in the role of reserve rider.

Honda TT Legends finish the Bol D’or in fifth

The Honda TT Legends team finished its debut Bol d’Or in an impressive fifth place after a grueling 24-hour race that saw John McGuinness, Steve Plater and Keith Amor complete 796 laps of the Magny-Cours circuit, France. The event was the first round of the 2011 FIM Endurance World Championship, which the team will contest along with the Isle of Man TT and the Ulster GP.

15-times TT race winner McGuinness started the race for the all-new team from seventh on the grid. His steady and conservative first laps set the tone for the rest of the race as each rider headed out onto the circuit for their individual stints with focus and determination.

Honda TT Legends secure seventh on the Bol D’or grid

The Honda TT Legends team will start the Bol d’Or from seventh on the grid after the second qualifying session at Magny-Cours in France this afternoon.

Road racing experts John McGuinness, Steve Plater and Keith Amor took to the track one-by-one in an attempt to set the fastest times possible in a field of over 50 teams. The best lap time from each rider across the two qualifying sessions is used to calculate a final average time for the team, which in turn determines the grid position.

Honda TT Legends qualify eighth on first day at the Bol D’or

After months of preparation, the Honda TT Legends team made its debut in the 2011 FIM Endurance World Championship today by placing eighth overall in the first qualifying session of the Bol d’Or at Magny-Cours, France.

Unfortunate Steve Plater requires further operation

Steve Plater will unfortunately not be able to join the HM Plant Honda team in the pit lane at this year’s TT, due to requiring a further operation following a crash in the Superbike practice session at the North West 200 road race two weeks ago.

Having sustained a broken arm during the crash which has required two operations – one to plate the two broken bones and the second to relieve pressure build up on the nerves – Steve has since experienced some shoulder and chest pain.

Highs and lows for HM Plant Honda riders at NW200

HM Plant Honda’s Steve Plater and John McGuinness have experienced some highs and lows during this week’s practices for Saturday’s North West 200 races, with both riders securing leading positions in the practice timesheets but also with Steve Plater sustaining a broken arm leaving him unable to compete on Saturday.

Steve and team-mate John entered today’s Superbike practice session in first and second positions respectively following Tuesday evening’s practice. However on the second lap of his outing, Steve crashed at the last corner, Quarry Hill, when he lost the front end of the bike and slid heavily into the safety fencing.

Podium and challenges for HM Plant Honda at Oulton Park

Honda’s HM Plant team had a challenging day at Oulton Park today for the third round of the British Superbike Championship, with Josh Brookes and Ryuichi Kiyonari each taking a top six finish.

In the opening race of the day Josh was running in the top four early in the race, but as the race progressed he continued to suffer with chatter which inevitably dropped him down the field to finish sixth. Kiyonari also suffered disappointment when he was challenging for the final podium position, but on the ninth lap he was forced wide by Alastair Seeley which dropped him down the order before he retired with a technical issue.

Honda gears up for 2010 Road Racing challenge

Honda (UK) Racing’s legendary motorcycle team is preparing for its up-coming 2010 road racing campaign, where it is looking to add to its impressive victory tally at the International North West 200 in May and famous Isle of Man TT races in June.