King of the Road – Joey Dunlop’s Legendary RC30 _ RC45 Go Under the Hammer

Beautiful, three big 1000s. Up 10 seconds to split Johnson and Jefferies on the road. Few names resonate quite as strongly in road racing as Joey Dunlop, the king of the roads. And Bonhams are extremely proud to be offering perhaps the most important racing motorcycles that we've had in one of our sales. This is Joey's 1988 Honda RC30, the very bike on which he won the Formula One TT and kicked off his second career TT hat-trick. The day undoubtedly belongs to Dunlop. The RC30 was Honda's revolutionary homologation superbike, hand-built by HRC with gear-driven cam V4, close-ratio gearbox and single-sided swing-on, designed for one reason, to win. And in Joey's hands, it did exactly that, helping him to a week of victories and a new outright lap record at over 118 miles an hour. And here is the RC45, the machine that brought Joey's story full circle. In 1999, at 47 years old, he rode this bike to a famous victory at the Ulster Grand Prix, proving he could still beat the next generation on the fastest road race circuit in the world. This is one of the last big bikes Joey ever rode. Both machines have been preserved by the Dunlop family. Most famously, the RC45 was hung in Joey's bar and the RC30 was kept in a glass case. They're exceptional bikes and it is an exceptional opportunity for collectors and enthusiasts. Both machines will be sold at our sale at the Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show at the Staffordshire County Showground on the 12th of October. You can register now to bid. Full details can be found in the link below. Come and buy something truly amazing.