Lee Johnston has confirmed his withdrawal from this month’s TT because of the injuries sustained in a testing crash in February. The 35-year-old had been in a race to fitness after breaking his right leg at the Almeria Circuit in Spain, but a recent scan has revealed the recovery is taking longer than Johnston had initially hoped.   Johnston also missed the 2023 event after suffering life-threatening injuries in a crash at the North West 200.

Lee said: ‘I’m absolutely devasted to be missing the TT for a second year. The last 12 months have without doubt been the toughest of my racing career, but the support from my team, family and the fans has been incredible.   ‘I’ve been working with some amazing medics and physiotherapists since the crash and I’ve been doing everything possible to get the leg strong enough to race at the TT, but it’s not to be.’   Johnston will now take on a role in the commentary box with Radio TT.