The Joey Dunlop OBE MBE, 1988 Isle of Man TT Formula 1 and Senior TT-winning 1988 Honda VFR750R RC30
Registration no. HM RC30-2100334 and RC30 2000127 to riveted plaque
Frame no. HM RC30-2100334
Engine no. unstamped
• Former outright TT lap record holder at 118.54mph
• Preserved by the Dunlop family
• Displayed in Joey's Bar in Ballymoney
• Engine tuned and signed by Tony Scott
Few motorcycles combine technological significance, sporting success, and emotional resonance like this one: the Honda RC30 on which William Joseph 'Joey' Dunlop won the 1988 Isle of Man Formula 1 TT – the first TT victory for Honda's legendary VFR750R, and the machine that delivered 'Yer Maun' his second career TT hat-trick.
Created by Honda Racing Corporation for one purpose – to win the World Superbike Championship – the RC30 was the most exotic production motorcycle of its era. Developed as a homologation special for the newly created WSBK, it brought Grand Prix technology to the roads: a hand-built 748cc gear-driven-cam V4 engine producing a claimed 112bhp; close-ratio six-speed gearbox with slipper clutch; four-piston front brake calipers; quick-release forks; and a single-sided swingarm for lightning-fast wheel changes. With a UK launch price of £8,499 – almost double that of a contemporary GSX-R750 – the RC30 was an exclusive thoroughbred.
The RC30 quickly justified its cost: Fred Merkel secured Honda's first two WSBK titles; Carl Fogarty won consecutive TT Formula 1 World Championships; and the bike proved tough enough to win endurance classics at Le Mans, Spa and Suzuka. "No other bike from the late-Eighties is lusted after like the RC30," Bike magazine observed – a sentiment that still holds true today.
Nowhere was the RC30's impact more dramatic than on the Isle of Man Mountain Course. In June 1988, Joey Dunlop – already a five-time TT Formula 1 World Championship winner and reigning World Champion – rode this very machine to victory in the Formula 1 TT, completing the four-lap race in 1hr 56min 50.2sec at an average speed of 116.25mph. He followed it with wins in the Junior TT (on a 250 Honda) and the Senior TT on this RC30 to achieve a remarkable second hat-trick, raising the outright TT lap record to 118.54mph in the Senior along the way. Joey later said that the RC30 gave him the precision and confidence to push harder than ever, describing it as the bike that "changed everything" for him on the Mountain Course.
In addition to its legendary performance at the Isle of Man TT, this RC30 was Joey Dunlop's weapon in several World Superbike Championship (WSBK) rounds during the 1988 season. Most notably, he rode it at Donington Park in April 1988 - the very first round in the Championship's history - where he finished on the podium in Race 1 and claimed 3rd overall on combined results. He also campaigned the bike at the Hungaroring, completing both races, and at the Hockenheimring, again finishing respectably. These outings underline how Joey not only dominated real-roads courses but also took the fight to the world's best on short circuits, proving both his own adaptability and the RC30's competitiveness across every type of race format.
Born in Ballymoney in 1952, Joey Dunlop rose from local club racing to become the most successful road racer of his era. Over a career spanning three decades he amassed 26 TT wins, including a record seven consecutive F1 victories; five straight TT Formula 1 World Championships (1982–1986); and dozens of wins at the North West 200 and Ulster Grand Prix. Known for his quiet modesty and generosity as much as his ferocious pace, he was awarded the MBE in 1986 and the OBE in 1996 for services to motorcycling. His tragic death while racing in Tallinn in 2000 prompted an outpouring of grief across the motorcycling world, and he remains revered as the 'King of the Roads'.
Since Joey's passing, this RC30 has been preserved by the Dunlop family and displayed at Joey's Bar in Ballymoney, where it occupied pride of place in the glass case at the heart of the collection. It has been lent out only for special occasions – including Classic TT paddock displays celebrating 30 years of the RC30 – and most recently for the 'Joey 25' commemorations marking the 25th anniversary of his death, allowing fans to pay tribute once again to both rider and machine.
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