As I write this, I should be on my way to the Isle of Man for the 2021 TT Races. But I?m not. Because the 2021 TT races aren?t happening. Cheers COVID. It?s the second year on the trot the highlight of my year has been canned, and I?m sick of it. But it hasn?t stopped me dreaming about it and spending most of my waking hours thinking about it. Because that?s just what I do. And one of the things I?ve been contemplating is the TT class structure. I?m happy with the Superbike, Superstock and Supersport classes. And I?m happy to let the wheelbarrows (sidecars) have their turn. But the lightweight class doesn?t do it for me anymore… and if you let me, I?ll tell you why.

The idea behind the lightweight class was surely to give teams a cheaper route into Isle of Man TT racing. And riders an easier route into it; hanging onto a Superbike round the Mountain Course takes some doing. But that?s not really what the Lightweight TT class is any more. You take a 650cc twin (like a Kawasaki ER6 or a Suzuki SV650) and turn it into a race bike. A competitive Lightweight bike will cost you as much as a Superstock bike to build; and a lot more to keep on top of. If you have a look at any of the front running Lightweight machines, you?ll see what I mean. They?re like mini superbikes. It?s certainly not a cheap or easy way to go racing.
But I do like the idea of having a class of bikes that are a bit friendlier to manhandle round the TT course. So let?s not scrap the class c...