Fresh from his heroic performance at this year’s Isle of man TT, Australia’s Josh Brookes has been confirmed to make his Classic TT debut later this month riding the Wiz Norton Racing 588cc Rotary superbike.

Earlier this year, and after a two-year hiatus, Brookesy posted the fastest ever lap by a Norton machine of 130.883mph during the 2017 Senior TT, when he rode the SG6 to sixth place.

The 34-year-old Sydney-born rider has already undergone initial tests of the machine at Donington Park in the UK and is eyeing the bike’s most famous past performance as his target.

Steve Hislop rode the 588cc machine to victory in the 1992 Senior TT after fierce battle with world Superbike star Carl Fogarty. The Scottish rider posted the fastest ever lap for a rotary-engined machine at the time, a 123.50mph, the time that Brookes and teammate Richard Wilson will aim to better.

“I’ve always been interested in the Rotary Norton racers from the 1990s and love the engineering ideas that went into this truly iconic motorcycle,” Brookes said. “I’m really excited about making my Classic TT debut on such a fabulous motorcycle and getting some more time on the TT Mountain Course.”

By Kel Buckley