Preparations for Michael Laverty’s Isle of Man TT team take next step

Preparations for Michael Laverty’s Isle of Man TT debut as a team owner have taken another step after taking delivery of new bikes at the weekend.

Former MotoGP and British Superbike rider Laverty announced last month that he would be entering his MLav Racing team into this year’s isle of Man TT and North West 200.

Laverty made the announcement during TNT Sports’ coverage of the Argentina MotoGP round, after Neil Hodgson inadvertently let the cat out of the bag.

The MLav Racing squad - which also competes in Moto3 - is due to field 17-time TT winner Ian Hutchinson, as well as double podium finisher Mike Browne on the roads on BMW machinery this year.

An official announcement is yet to be made, though Crash.net understands this will come some time next week.

However, preparations are ongoing, with Charles Hurst Motorrad in Belfast posting on its social media channels that Michael Laverty’s brother John Laverty has collected two of the M1000RRs the team will race this year.

Intriguingly, the post also mentions a British Superbike campaign - though details on that have yet to emerge.

Hutchinson competed at the TT last year with the Padgetts Racing team, having reunited a partnership that saw him claim his historic five-in-a-week success in 2010.

But the 2024 TT was tough for the Englishman, who managed a best of 12th in the Senior TT.

Browne has been on the up on the road racing scene in recent years and scored a podium in the Supertwin class last year.

On an Aprilia, he set the fastest ever lap for the brand on his way to a top six finish in the Senior TT.