Catching up with the ANZAC contingent at the Isle of Man TT

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TT 2026

ANZAC Recap Friday, June 5

With racing cancelled on Thursday at the TT, it gives us a chance to get in and around the paddock and catch up with the antipodean riders competing in this year’s races.

Josh Brookes

Double BSB champion Josh Brookes finished just off the podium in last Sunday’s SBK TT when he brought the DAO Racing Honda Fireblade home in fourth.

Brookes tells us he still hasn’t quite found the sweet spot on that machine this year, but is much happier than he was 12 months ago when he really struggled for pace at both the TT and the North West 200, when riding for the Jackson racing team.

Josh Brookes riding the DAO Racing Honda Fireblade during Superstock practice at the 2026 Isle of Man TT.

For 2026, he’s also got a GSX-R750 at his disposal for the Supersport races, which he’s also relatively happy with. Less-than-perfect conditions meant he was a little cautious out of the blocks in Tuesday’s race, but a strong finish saw him finish fifth on the Uggly and Co. sponsored machine.

Josh Brookes on the IoM TT so far…

“Everything’s quite good really, a lot of my reflection this year has been on the back of last year. Last year was quite disappointing in results. I didn’t ever get the bike in a balance that I was happy to go fast on, so all my times were well below any of my personal bests.

Josh Brookes airborne on the Uggly & Co Suzuki GSX-R750 during the 2026 Supersport TT.

“The Supersport bike has worked well from the start, I don’t want to say it’s worked perfectly because you’re always changing things but it’s worked well. In a similar pattern, the Superstock bike has been a very easy process of change. A little bit of spring, a little bit of damping, just general set-up stuff. But no big changes… the bike’s relatively been good from the start.

“Where we’ve been having to work a lot is the Superbike. Being full World Superbike spec chassis… it’s got adjustable head angle, triple clamp off-set, rear suspension lean swing arm and all the usual things you can change. So, we set off with the bike like I would normally have it in BSB and start from there and then make changes.

Josh Brookes leading Jamie Coward on the Mountain Course during the 2026 Superbike TT.

“But really everything about the bike was not working on the roads. So, we’ve diverted back to a more standard position which is closer to stock bike and the bike has been performing better in that position than how it was when set up for the track.

“I don’t really have the answer for why that’s happened because all the other years I’ve preferred the Superbike because it has all the ability to make those changes… maybe it’s a character of the Honda, I don’t know.

Last year the Honda was nervous at the front end and that was upsetting the rear. Brookes and the team worked on it a lot throughout NW 200 and the TT but never found a solution…

Josh Brookes riding the DAO Racing Honda Fireblade during the 2026 Isle of Man TT Superbike race.

“To a small degree the Superbike is still like that a little bit this year. We’ve got it a lot better and I ran into fourth position in the Superbike race. So, the bike’s not terrible but it’s still unstable and you only have to watch the footage to see the instability I speak of. The silver lining is that if you were able to fix that then you’d be quicker.

“It’s not like you’ve put all your best cards down and your still short. I’m riding into a very competitive position (fourth in Sunday’s SBK TT) on a bike that’s clearly not perfect, so that gives me encouragement that if we can just make some adjustments and fine tune it then we can then maybe make it better again.”

Davo Johnson

Adelaide’s Davo Johnson retired from the big six-lap SBK race and was bitterly disappointed to do so.

His Platinum Club Kawasaki was suffering from a major vibration and he couldn’t be sure what it was, so pulled in just after Ballagarey on lap three. In the end, it turned out a broken exhaust bracket was causing the issue.

Davo Johnson speaking with media in the Platinum Club Kawasaki awning at the 2026 Isle of Man TT.

Davo Johnson on the IoM TT so far…

“First race, I’m not quite sure if there was anything wrong with the engine itself, but an Akrapovic exhaust bracket broke and it was hitting on the engine causing a mega vibration and I didn’t know what it was. That’s the reason why the speed wasn’t there in the early part of the race, because I was over thinking that.

“I thought maybe the tyre had spun on the rim, so I wanted to get to the pit stop and put a new tyre in and see if that was the problem. But it was still vibrating like mad so I had to pull out. My full focus was on that issue, so I just pulled off after Ballagarey and rode back along the back roads. I was so disappointed, because that race I was fifth last year.”

Davo Johnson riding the Platinum Club Kawasaki during practice at the 2026 Isle of Man TT.

The Supersport bike has never been Davo’s go-to weapon of choice due to his size, and the CD Racing Kawasaki 636 he’s armed with this year, perhaps wouldn’t be his first choice for those hoping for a win against the likes of the V2 Ducati and 765 Triumph. But nevertheless, Johnson put a strong performance in on Tuesday and almost managed a top 10 finish…

Davo Johnson riding the CD Racing Kawasaki 636 during the 2026 Supersport TT.

“We just have to do what we can on that bike, we’re dealing with 900 cc bikes. It’s got good top end – well it’s still 12mph down on Dunlop – but it’s getting there. I was in the dice for top 10 and I ended up 11th. I was really happy with how I rode but I wasn’t happy with the position. It was a fairly close race with some of the guys, so it should have been a better position. Normally bikes break down all the time in Supersport, but nobody broke down… I was hoping I could sneak in a cheeky top 10 but 11th is where it was and now, I’m looking forward to the rest of the races.”

All being well, Davo will be out in three races on Friday with Supersport, Sportsbike and the Senior TT all scheduled.

Davo Johnson riding the Platinum Club Kawasaki Superbike on the Mountain Course at the 2026 Isle of Man TT.

He was a late replacement for Franco Bourne (who withdrew at the eleventh hour) on the Sportsbike ILR 650cc Paton. He managed three laps of practice but was wary of doing too much on the little bike, as the Patons are notoriously temperamental.

“I didn’t want to do too many laps, I wanted to save it because that’s a competitive bike. I think we could possibly be in the shout for a top five on that, so I just have to go out and ride the frickin’ nuts off it and try not to over rev it! I’d be over the moon with a top five, but I’d be happy with a top 10 too because I’m a big dude.

It’s only a two lap race which means no pit stops, which disappoints Johnson…

“My team have been really good, so disappointed not to get them involved in the pitstops.”

Mitch Rees

New Zealand’s Mitch Rees has had a positive TT despite the lack of racing. The good weather in practice week meant he had already doubled his seat time compared with his debut year in 2025 by the start of this year’s race week. For him, it’s all about learning and progression…

Mitch Rees on the IoM TT so far…

“It’s better than last year! We had a whole bunch of practice laps; had almost as many practice laps as we had the whole of TT last year… so really happy. And dry laps, my first dry lap was this year! So really happy and just trying to enjoy it. I just want to keep the ball rolling, the result doesn’t really matter this year.

“Weather’s not been great for race week which is a shame. First week feels like we were going in the right direction and now it feels like we’re in a kind of stop motion.”

Mitch Rees riding the Milenco by Padgett’s Honda CBR600RR during the 2026 Supersport TT.

The big but pleasant surprise for Mitch is how successful he’s been on the CBR600RR Honda in Supersport. Last month, he got a top six at the North West 200 and on Tuesday he managed a 13th in the Supersport TT.

Rees has spent almost his whole career on Superbike so it’s been unexpected for him how things have gone.

“The North West was unreal. There was a bit of carnage in front of me (some crashes for the front runners), but still, being around the top 10 was good. Here is the same. Started off 21st and ended up 13th in the race; not far off Conor Cummins and ahead of Nathan Harrison.

“So, it’s good company I’m around. Considering I’ve not raced a Supersport since 2017 – in Australia actually. I raced one at Sydney and then the final round at Phillip Island that year and that’s the only two times I’ve ever raced a Supersport bike before this year. I’ve never raced one in New Zealand, so it’s good!”

Friday at the IoM TT

On Friday, we have a full schedule of racing, which includes the second Supersport race of the week, followed by the first Sportsbike, and then the big one, the Senior TT.

The Senior was cancelled last year, and the organisers have moved it forward to give it every chance of running, given that the forecast shows inclement weather will continue into the week.

Last Saturday’s Superstock race was given one last chance to run on Thursday, but regular heavy showers throughout the day meant that that wasn’t possible, and so it’s been completely cancelled.

Friday’s outlook had looked perfect yesterday, but as things stand, it now looks as though there may be some showers coming and going throughout the day.

With only two races having taken place so far, it’s fair to say that TT 2026 really needs those showers to stay away to get this event off the ground.

Check back to see how it all pans out.