Wednesday 12 July was a very special day for a handful of lucky Britons. Seventeen new owners of the Limited Edition CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SP John McGuinness 100th Start Replica were presented with their new addition to the Honda Racing Center by the man himself.
After being unveiled at Motorcycle Live in Birmingham last year, the JMG 100th starting Fireblade SP, which was to be released in a limited edition of just 30 pieces, sold out in no time. However, they had to be patient, it would take more than half a year before they could receive the keys to their new acquisition.
On the other hand, the Lucky Bastards have been pampered by Honda. That is, 17 of them, who were received at Honda’s racing headquarters a week ago on Wednesday, July 12, where they were given a tour, photo opportunities and a chance to chat with a real TT legend.
They were then handed the keys to their own JMG 100th start Fireblade SP by the Morecambe Missile himself, who had of course freshly signed the bike. During the day a tour of the impressive Honda Racing facility was also made.
John McPils’ history with Honda goes way back, from his 108 starts in the TT he has done 80 times with Honda. McGuinness was the first ever driver to break the 130 mph mark in 2007, with a best-ever time of 132.7 mph set in 2015. This year he set a fastest time of 131.183 mph in the final round of the Senior TT.
Oh, interesting fact: of the total 1,433.74 miles he covered during the 2023 Isle of Man TT, 430 miles were full throttle…so still super fast after all these years.
“I was stunned. The bike looks mega, but what means even more to me are the people I met today. As I said from the start, the Fireblade has meant a lot to me and the TT over the last 30 years meant. But what I’ve been reminded of is that the TT is more than racing bikes. It’s the fans from all over who make it a unique event. What a great feeling, to welcome the new owners of my 100th start Fireblade to shake SP’s hand, hand over the keys and see something so special – for me and for them – roll out the door of the race shop.
“I marked today as an exceptional one on the Honda UK calendar. This project came from our hearts to celebrate together a unique man and memorable machine. It’s great to see John, his 100th Fireblade SP and all these customers come together. And I know there will be very happy people in their garages tonight, enjoying their newfound pride…”
The new owners:
It was a day I had been looking forward to for a while. I own a pair of Fireblades and when it launched on Motorcycle Live last year I jumped right in and put down a deposit hoping I’d be one of the lucky few to get picked. When I was told in December/January that I would get number 2, I was very happy. I’m a huge fan of John’s and loved watching him at the TT and having him here while I picked up this special Fireblade just made the day fantastic!
Simply put, I am a huge Honda fan and have pretty much owned most Fireblades since 1992. I’m also a huge TT fan, worked there for many years and have seen John since his first TT in 1996. When the bike was launched I had to have one. I specifically asked for number 23 to match his current number of TT wins and to have him here signing the bike and talking about his career and it was absolutely amazing, what a day!
– Thanks for information from Motorfreaks.