Honda Racing’s Guy Martin has admitted his appearance at the 2017 Vauxhall North West 200 is simply to get his licence to race at next month’s Isle of Man TT.

Martin, who has been out at Tandragee and Cookstown this year, has to compete in enough events previous to the TT to get a licence signatures, so will enter all the Superbike, Supersport and Superstock races at the North West. Martin last raced at the North West two years ago where he fell out with organisers about chicanes, and aid he would never be back.

“If I want to race the TT, I need to get some signatures. I love riding and we have some tweaking to do with the new model, we are here to do a job, it serves a purpose. It’s a means to an end, to learn about the bike but the areas we need to learn, this isn’t really the place. We need throttle connection, mid-corner stuff, but we will learn corner entry and that,” said Martin.

“I love riding in Ireland, I did Tandragee and Cookstown, I'd forgotten how much I loved it.  I went and raced my pushbike last year and realised I should have packed in racing years ago, I had been going through the motions, going round in circles like Groundhog Day. The Honda said I could ride a Honda 6 as well as the new Fireblade, so I said yes.”