Mugen to build and race electric motorcycle at the 2012 Isle of Man TT

The Isle of Man TT is always a highlight of my racing calendar and reached a personal high point last year when I was fortunate enough to be able to interview TT legend John McGuinness.

As much as I love watching the “Morecambe Missile” and the TT’s traditional races, one of the most fascinating and innovative categories I have found in recent years is the TT Zero class.

The TT Zero race takes place over one lap in a time trial format and is restricted to entrants using motorcycles with zero-emission engines that emit no CO2. Indeed, the IOM Government has offered a £10,000 prize for the first team to break an average speed of 100mph around the 37¾ mile mountain circuit.

The last few years have seen American motorcycle firm MotoCzysz dominate the class with their E1pc electric bike. 2012 though should see them face stiff competition with news coming Thursday that Mugen will be entering this year’s race with an all-new electric motorcycle.

Many associate Mugen to be a subdivision of Honda, however Honda do not own Mugen even though they have a close working relationship and family ties. Mugen was founded in 1973 by Hirotoshi Honda, son of Honda founder Soichiro.

Mugen is also no stranger to motorsport having competed in various categories including including Formula One. The Japanese firm won four Grand Prix’s between 1992 and 2000 working with teams including Jordan, Prost, Lotus and Ligier.

Mugen currently competes in Japanese GT and Formula Nippon and were recently confirmed as Honda’s engine partner in their forthcoming World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) campaign. The firm is not unfamiliar with motorcycle racing though having previously competed in the Suzuka 8 hour endurance race and World Championship Motocross.

Mugen state they expect to confirm a rider soon and will then begin testing the new ebike in Japan and the UK.

"We are keen to use this excellent event to educate and prepare the engineers of the next generation for the use of future technology,” said Team Mugen’s Satoshi Katsumata. “We are very excited about adding to the long history of Japanese manufacturers on the Isle of Man." By James Foreman

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Comments (1)

|2012-03-02 14:58:49 Marco - Mcguinness to ride it

I don't know if you already know but TT legend John Mcguinness (17x winner) has let it slip that he will be a rider of the Mugen electric bike. He also said he will be testing it in Japan next week.
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|2012-03-02 15:24:40 James Foreman

Yes, I heard earlier today, great news indeed, I'll have to catch-up with John and get his thoughts on the bike. Thanks for your post Marco!
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