Triumph puts brakes on Guy Martin's record bid

Guy Martin’s attempt to crack the Land Speed Record on a Triumph has been shelved until next year.

The TV star and roads racing ace suffered a high-speed crash at the Ulster Grand Prix last week, and broke vertebrae in his back and his sternum. He is not expected to race again this year and the record attempt has been postponed from the end of this month until 2016.

A spokesman for Triumph said: “We’re obviously concerned with the news that Guy has sustained injuries as a result of his crash in last week’s Dundrod 150 race. While in true form, Guy has signed himself out of hospital this week, we all feel that given his injuries it won’t be possible to complete the required testing prior to attempting to take the record this year. 

“Guy is a unique talent and having such a pilot for our Rocket motorcycle is absolutely central to our attempt. We wish him a full and speedy recovery and will confirm a new date for our 2016 bid as soon as we can.”

Guy was scheduled to tackle the record attempt, which currently stands at 376.363 mph, from August 23. The attempt has suffered previous setbacks due to riders being injured and the Salt Flats in America being unsafe for high speed runs.

The 2015 Triumph Rocket Streamliner features a carbon Kevlar monocoque construction with two turbocharged Triumph Rocket III engines producing a combined 1000bhp at 9000rpm. The motorcycle is 25.5 feet long, 2 feet wide and 3 feet tall. Powered by methanol fuel, the bike will compete in the Division C (streamlined motorcycle) category. 

Triumph have a long legacy of smashing the land speed record and held the title of ‘World’s Fastest Motorcycle’ from 1955 to 1970 with the exception of a brief 33 day period. The record-breaking Triumph Streamliners which included: Devil’s Arrow, Texas Cee-gar, Dudek Streamliner and Gyronaut X1, the former achieving a top speed of 245.667 mph (395.28 km/h). Today’s bar, held by Rocky Robinson since 2010 riding the Top Oil-Ack Attack streamliner, sits at 376.363 mph (605.697 km/h).

The attempt is now being moved to 2016 with a date yet to be officially announced by Triumph.