The 1992 Senior TT was a classic - and is often described as one of the best
ever races in TT history.
After their record busting TT in 1991 on board the all conquering Hondas,
Steve Hislop and Carl Fogerty had not planned to be back in 1992.
However, they both lined up on Glencrutchery Road that year on 'inferior'
machinery - Hislop on Ron Haslam's Norton and Fogerty on the Loctite Yamaha. The
Norton 588 had been developed on a shoe string budget when compared to Honda
Racing's RC45's. JPS had no intention of backing Hislop's TT campaign, but after
some scratching around for some sponsorship and some minimal testing time, the
team headed for the Isle of Man.
Hislop's Norton took to the circuit in unconventional white livery, backed by
Steve's long term sponsor Abus. Hislop and the team defied the bike's detractors
taking a fine 2nd place in the opening Formula 1 race. The bike had proved it
could complete 6 laps of the grueling mountain course in hot weather, and the
team could look forward to Friday's Senior TT. A number of adjustments had been
made to the Norton prior to the Senior - a larger screen was fitted to protect
Hislop from the high winds, the front mud guard was removed to let in more air,
and protective covers were fitted to the front forks.
Hislop's main rival would again be Carl Fogerty, but Carl would start at
number 4. Hislop would start at 19. Not only would this give Hislop more
traffic, but it would give the crowd an anxious wait as the officials calculated
the time difference between them - a difference that never exceeded 7.4 seconds.
As the race progressed, the two gladiators smashed the records they set the
previous year with Hislop taking a narrow advantage into the last lap. In a last
ditch attempt to catch Hislop, Fogerty recorded a blistering lap time of more
than 123mph on his unfancied Yamaha. It was all in vain however, with Hislop
guiding the fly splattered Norton home to an historical win - one of Hislop's
greatest achievements and one of the most popular TT wins ever.
Carl Fogerty's lap record stood for 7 years.
Hislop and Fogerty became Britain's best motorcycle racers of the modern age,
taking many race wins and championships at home and abroad. It was the 1992
Senior TT that saw them battle together for the last time.
