Johnston makes change from BMW to Honda for 2023 TT marketing campaign

Lee Johnston on Honda for 2023

After a irritating TT in 2022, Ashcourt Racing’s Lee Johnston is hoping {that a} change from BMW to Honda equipment for the big-bore races on the 2023 Isle of Man TT Races will assist him to podium finishes.

Johnston and the staff have bought ex-Glenn Irwin CBR1000RR-RR Fireblades from the official Honda Racing outfit, and is ready to marketing campaign the bikes within the RST Superbike, RL360 and Milwaukee Senior races later this 12 months

Winner of the opening Supersport race in 2019, Johnston is hoping the change to the Fireblade will elevate him additional up the leaderboard within the massive bike races and complement his problem within the Monster Vitality Supersport and Bennetts Supertwin Races the place he’ll once more be amongst the favourites for honours.

“We had a little bit of hassle with the large bikes final 12 months, electrical points and the like, which was an actual disgrace as I used to be working within the prime 4 in each the Superbike and Superstock Races,” defined Johnston. “Being that top up solely to run into issues was very irritating.

“You solely have to go searching the paddock at each the roads and the quick circuits to see that the Honda Fireblade is favoured by loads of riders, and fairly a couple of guys have been going properly on it currently. That tells me the bike has a superb base chassis and it’s a superb package deal all spherical so it’s value attempting at this 12 months’s TT.”

That feeling has been confirmed for Johnston in latest assessments on the Spanish circuits of Monteblanco and Andalucia.

“It’s modified massively since I final rode a Honda in 2018. The newer mannequin feels very nice and clean,” he defined. “It feels small too, and the very fact it’s good and compact provides a small rider like myself loads of confidence straightaway. I felt actually comfy on it.”

Though thought-about extra of a small bike rider, Johnston’s first ever TT podium got here within the Superstock class when he completed third behind Ian Hutchinson and Michael Dunlop in 2015, and he’s decided to get good outcomes on the Fireblade this time round:

“It was fairly humorous being on a Superstock podium alongside Hutchy and Michael, however I need to give it an actual good go on the large bikes this 12 months particularly as issues have been going properly final 12 months earlier than I hit hassle. I used to be capable of lap at 130 mph from a standing begin and while there’s a few mph to be discovered for it to occur, I’d like to be on an enormous bike podium once more.

“That’s not going to be simple while you see the likes of Michael ending off the rostrum in a Senior Race, like he did final 12 months. That reveals you the way troublesome it’s to complete on a Superbike podium however the extra mileage we do, the higher likelihood we’ll have.”

It’s extremely probably Johnston will contest some early season British Superstock Championship rounds, together with the British Supersport Championship on his acquainted Yamaha YZF-R6.

Johnston may also compete within the two Bennetts Supertwin Races and is hopeful of being extra aggressive this 12 months on his Aprilia RS660: “We completed second in final 12 months’s race however didn’t actually deserve the rostrum, so we’ve been growing the bike over the winter to get some extra energy out of it. I need to be aggressive and be genuinely ‘in’ the race this time round in order to bridge the hole to the entrance runners. I’m unsure if the Paton’s that Peter [Hickman] and Michael rode final 12 months can be within the race, however you’ve obtained to do 120mph to win the race it doesn’t matter what you’re using in order that’ll be the goal.”