c.1974/5 Suzuki TR750. Registration number not registered. F...

Estimate

£25,000 - £30,000

c.1974/5 Suzuki TR750. Registration number not registered. Frame number not visible TR???. Engine number GT750 64364.
This machine was fully restored by Nigel Everett, Barry Sheens' mechanic, over several years. He used the believed frame of Dave Aldana's 1975 Suzuki TR750 with many new parts, including forks, exhaust, carbs, dry clutch and wheels.
Aldana was a part of the American team that went to England to participate in the Trans-Atlantic Match Races.
In 1975, Aldana secured a ride on the factory Suzuki road racing team, but suffered mechanical problems with the team that year. He won the 1975 Superbike Production race at Daytona on a Suzuki. That race was a direct predecessor of the AMA Superbike Series, which officially kicked off the next year.
Formula 750 racing was all the rage in the early 1970's. In Europe, the inaugural 1972 Imola 200 has gone down in history for Ducati’s 1-2 by Paul Smart and Bruno Spagiarri. Across in USA, the appetite for the new formula was even more fervent. Up to this point, Suzuki had been racing their twin-cylinder air-cooled TR500 with moderate success, but the release of the road-going water cooled GT750 paved the way for a fresh attack.
The main problem for Suzuki was that the AMA, which controlled the racing scene, had an ‘Old Mates’ deal via a rule in 1968 banning liquid cooling. However in 1971 that rule was modified to permit liquid cooling provided it was standard on the engine on the model approved for racing. Enter the TR750, racing version of the GT750. In its original guise, the TR750’s engine unit closely mirrored the roadster, almost. One subtle difference was the castings for the cylinders and heads, the components having a markedly different appearance to the road items, with no vertical finning on the block. It was banned after a maiden win at Road Atlanta, due to a protest by The Hansen Kawasaki team (which had finished second and third) which saw all three Suzuki's disqualified over modified top ends.