Isle of Man TT: Nathan Harrison withdraws because of crash injuries

Nathan Harrison made his debut at the Isle of Man TT in 2022

Manx racer Nathan Harrison has withdrawn from next week's Isle of Man TT races because of injury, his team have confirmed.

The 24-year-old suffered a broken collarbone and fractured wrist in a crash at the North West 200 earlier this month.

In a statement, Honda Racing UK said the decision had been taken to allow him time to fully recover.

Harrison said he was "absolutely gutted" to miss the event.

The Manxman came off his machine during the Superstock race on 11 May, leading to the race being red flagged.

The team said his concussion from the incident meant surgery on his collarbone had to be delayed by a week.

"The decision has been made that he is not fit to ride at this year's event given the limited time since his surgery to recover," the team added.

Race team manager Havier Beltran said Harrison was in agreement about the decision to withdraw from the 2023 TT so that he could "focus on making a full recovery".

A former double Manx Grand Prix winner, Harrison finished in the top 10 in the Senior race in debut at the TT in 2022.

Harrison said: "I am obviously absolutely gutted to be missing my first race for Honda Racing UK at the TT, but in reality, this is the best decision for my health and safety, and for my future career.

"If I rushed things then raced and caused further damage or went slow and finished outside of the top 15 I wouldn't be doing myself justice.

"I want to race at the TT 100% fit and healthy and achieve the results that I know I am capable of."

As a result of Harrison's withdrawal Honda Racing UK will compete at the event as a single-rider team with 23-time TT winner John McGuinness.

The Isle of Man TT is due to start on Monday and run until 10 June.