Michael Dunlop will not race for the Honda TT Legends team in 2014, despite winning four TTs in a week in 2013.
Team manager Neil Tuxworth said that the reason for the split was that the Ballymoney racer had been unable to agree terms with the Honda works team.
“We put two or three deals to Michael but he turned them all down,” Tuxworth told Motorcycle News. “Michael will not be with Honda next year. That is 100%. He decided that he didn’t want to stay with Honda. You couldn’t have had a much more successful season than we have had this year with Michael, winning four out of five TTs.”
Dunlop, who was unable for comment, placed himself at the top of the world’s road racing talent in 2013 by taking four out of five wins at the Isle of Man TT, including the opening Superbike race of the week. The only race he missed out on was the final race of the week, the Senior TT, which team-mate John McGuinness won, taking his TT victory tally to 20.
The name Dunlop is synonymous with road racing, with Michael’s uncle, Joey, scoring 26 wins around the 37-mile track, the most wins in the history of the TT. Michael’s father, Robert, scored 5 wins and Michael’s older brother, William, has three third positions to his name.
