TT 2026: Dean Harrison feels he 'repaid Honda' for building special TT bike with stunning Superbike win
Dean Harrison achieved his aim of winning a six-lap Superbike race at the Isle of Man TT with an all-conquering ride in Sunday’s showpiece.
The Honda Racing rider lived up to the hype after dominating throughout qualifying week on his Superbike and Superstock machines, recording his fastest lap on his Superstock machine at 135.484mph in Friday’s final session.
Harrison went into the race as a big favourite and quickly stamped his authority, setting the fastest lap from a standing start at 134.892mph.
That gave the 37-year-old a 12-second advantage over Michael Dunlop (MD/Hawk Racing Honda), who eventually had to settle for third after being overhauled by Peter Hickman (8TEN Racing BMW).
A second lap of 134.765mph for Harrison gave him a comfortable cushion of 24.327s over Ulsterman Dunlop and from there, Harrison was able to control the race.
He soon passed Nathan Harrison (H& Motorcycles Honda) and his Honda Racing team-mate John McGuinness to lead on the roads and Harrison had the luxury of being able to roll off on the sixth and final lap.
In almost perfect conditions around the 37.73-mile Mountain Course, he secured his sixth TT success by 15.580s from Hickman, who pulled clear of Dunlop over the final two laps to clinch the runner-up spot by 12.416s.
It was Harrison’s first Superbike TT win and his second in the premier class after he won the Senior in 2019, when he capitalised on machine problems for Hickman to emerge victorious on the Silicone Engineering Kawasaki.
The Bradford man, who now lives at Ballaugh on the Isle of Man, won both Superstock races in 2025 to earn the official Honda team’s first TT wins in a decade.
Harrison’s maiden triumph was in the Lightweight Supertwin race in 2014. He also sealed a Supersport win in 2018 in the second race on his Silicone Engineering Kawasaki.
However, his victory in Sunday’s RST Superbike six-lapper will go down as one of the greatest moments in his career.
“I felt strong all week, to be honest; I probably had a bit in the tank,” said Harrison, who persuaded Honda to build him a hybrid Superbike/Superstock machine to his own personal specifications.
“So, I got stuck in and got a decent lead to come into the pits and tried to manage it from there.
“But it’s so hard to keep the concentration. Six laps around here is so physical to do, and it’s literally point to point to point to keep pushing the whole time.
“To get a Superbike win for me, I said to Neil Fletcher, the boss, ‘I really want to win a six-lap Superbike race’.
“We went away, we built a special bike with Honda.
“I need to say a big thanks to them because they pulled it out of the bag for me, and I feel like I paid them back now with a Superbike win.
“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.
“It’s good for me, because I’ve got a win in every single one now: I’ve got Superbike, Supersport, Senior, Superstock. So, hopefully there’s a few more to come."
Harrison will be confident of adding to his tally, with two Superstock races still to come ahead of Saturday’s blue riband Senior.