John McGuinness carries on: Why the red flag is driving him to the TT 2027

• Plans for 2027: North West 200 (11–15 May), TT (31 May – 12 June) and selected BSB rounds
• McGuinness turns 55 in April and has 23 Tourist Trophy wins
• Official confirmation from Honda is still pending

The answer came on the sidelines of the season finale at Brands Hatch. There, John McGuinness raced in the final round of the National Superstock 1000 Championship, a national series on the support bill of the British Superbike Championship. Speaking to broadcaster TNT Sports, the Morecambe rider talked about his plans for next year. By his own account, he was not allowed to reveal much. But what he did say leaves little doubt: the 23-time TT winner is carrying on for another season.

Which races will John McGuinness contest in 2027?

In 2027, McGuinness plans to race at the North West 200 in Northern Ireland, at the TT on the Isle of Man and at a few selected rounds of the British Superbike Championship (BSB). He also wants to test with his team before the season.

In his own words: “I’m going to go testing with the team and I’m going to be riding next year with the team, and we’ll be on the grid at some various races. We’re going to pick and choose a few BSB rounds but the North West and TT’s on the horizon.”

The two big road races are close together in 2027. The North West 200 takes place from 11 to 15 May. Just over two weeks later, the TT gets under way, running from 31 May to 12 June. This puts McGuinness among the riders lining up for the TT 2027. As in previous years, race fortnight on the Isle of Man remains the highlight of his season.

What does the red flag in the 2026 Senior TT have to do with his decision?

McGuinness does not want to end his TT career with a race that was cut short. That is exactly how the 2026 Senior TT ended, the main race of the event and traditionally its finale.

The race was declared after one lap after Finland’s Erno Kostamo crashed at the 11th Milestone. McGuinness was classified eleventh. For a rider who has won the Senior TT seven times, it was not the farewell he had in mind. He said: “I didn’t want to finish the TT on a red flag! It was a red flag in the Senior and I didn’t want to finish that way, but I’m still motivated, still focused, and I still want to improve myself.”

He also made clear that his drive does not come from that one race alone. He describes racing as something he cannot let go of, almost like an illness. With a dose of self-irony he added: “Even though I look a bit saggy around the old face and a bit heavier on the belly, the fire’s still burning and I’m enjoying it still.”

How fast was McGuinness in the 2026 season?

In 2026, McGuinness was faster than ever before over a full race distance on the Isle of Man. He finished fifth in the Superbike TT, setting his fastest-ever time over six laps. One lap of the Mountain Course measures 37.73 miles, or around 60.7 kilometres.

First win since 2019 at the Classic TT

Late in the summer came a success he had waited seven years for. On 24 August 2026, he won the Historic Senior at the Classic TT, a three-lap race for historic motorcycles. On Team Winfield’s Paton, he pulled away from the start. His opening lap of 113.028 mph (around 181.9 km/h) was the fastest of the race. At the flag he was 26.8 seconds ahead of Shaun Anderson, also on a Paton. Mike Browne finished third on a Norton ES2. For McGuinness, it was his fourth win in this class and his first race win since the 2019 Classic TT. The race also came in the year marking the 30th anniversary of his Mountain Course debut.

Season finale at Brands Hatch

At the season finale at Brands Hatch, he finished 18th in the first Superstock race on Saturday. In the second race on Sunday, held in cold and wet conditions, he improved to twelfth. He admitted that at the start he had expected a long race. But then he found a good rhythm and took the points to end the season, after Saturday had gone only averagely.

Will John McGuinness stay with Honda in 2027?

Everything points to McGuinness racing for Honda Racing UK again in 2027. He himself speaks of testing and racing with “the team”, but there is no official confirmation from Honda yet.

His role with the manufacturer has changed. Alongside his racing commitments, he now also works as a brand ambassador and carries out other duties for Honda. He put it like this: “The job’s sort of a changed a little bit, some ambassador stuff, some different bits and pieces with Honda, but I still like putting the leathers on and that’s the problem.”

In the race team, McGuinness rides a Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP. His teammate is Dean Harrison, who is tasked with winning TT races for Honda Racing UK. The link to the factory team is not a given. After his serious crash at the North West 200 in 2017, a difficult spell with Norton followed. Only when the TT returned in 2022 after the coronavirus break was McGuinness back on a factory Honda. His road racing career now stretches into its fourth decade.

During the summer, there had been open talk in the paddock about whether a younger rider should take over his seat at Honda. Harrison and Davey Todd clearly backed McGuinness on the TT’s own show “Between the Hedges”. Harrison pointed out that he finishes in the top six every time out with lap averages of around 132 mph (212 km/h). He asked: “Realistically, who’s going faster than him on the grid that’s going to get his ride and take that ride to the next place?” Todd said: “I don’t think there’s anybody else who deserves his seat at Honda.” You cannot ask someone to retire who is still setting personal bests and enjoying it, he added.

Will the North West 200 in 2027 bring his 100th start?

That is possible. According to official statistics, McGuinness had contested exactly 96 races at the North West 200 before the 2026 edition, and the milestone had originally been expected in 2026.

Because the Superbike and Superstock races on the Thursday of the 2026 event were cancelled, his 100th start moved to 2027 based on the count at the time. A year earlier, McGuinness had already expected to reach the milestone and had a special helmet painted for the occasion. He had to pack it away again because, as he admitted himself, he had miscounted his number of starts.

His history on the Northern Irish circuit goes back a long way. He has been racing at the North West 200 for more than 30 years. He took his first podium there in 1997, finishing second in the 250/400cc class behind Callum Ramsey. Between 2000 and 2012 he won six races there. In 2017 he crashed heavily on the high-speed circuit due to a technical failure and broke several vertebrae. In 2024, aged 52, he was back on the podium once more, finishing third in the second Superstock race.

What is McGuinness’s record at the TT?

With 23 wins, McGuinness is the third most successful rider in TT history. Only Michael Dunlop with 36 and Joey Dunlop with 26 wins are ahead of him.

Since his debut in 1996, he has contested more than 100 races on the Mountain Course. He is particularly closely linked to the Senior TT: with seven wins in that race, he shares the record with Mike Hailwood. Wins in the fight at the front of the modern classes are now out of his reach. But his times show that he is still holding his own near the front. For the TT 2027, he brings a wealth of experience that hardly anyone else on the grid can match.

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