Two motorcycles from The Dunlop Family Collection are going to be sold at auction. Joey Dunlop’s 1988 Honda VFR750R RC30 and 1999 Honda RVF750 RC45, two motorcycles that bookend his career, will be auctioned on October 12 at The Autumn Stafford Sale by Bonhams|Cars Motorcycles. It’s part of The Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show at the Staffordshire County Showground in Stafford, UK.
The 1988 Honda VFR750R RC30 marked a turning point in Joey Dunlop’s career. This bike won the 1988 Isle of Man Formula 1 TT and Senior TT, helping Dunlop achieve his second TT hat-trick and setting a lap record at 118.54mph. It was the first TT win for the RC30, a hand-built Honda designed for the World Superbike Championship. With the V4 engine producing 112 horsepower, a single-sided swingarm, and state-of-the-art brakes, the RC30 was a technological marvel.
Dunlop, already a five-time TT Formula 1 World Champion, used this RC30 to dominate the 1988 season, including a podium at the first-ever WSBK round at Donington Park. He called it the bike that “changed everything” for his racing. This RC30 features a factory-stamped frame and engine tuned by Tony Scott, making it a piece of road-racing history.
The 1999 Honda RVF750 RC45 marked the final chapter of Joey Dunlop’s storied career. This genuine HRC works machine, with an unstamped factory frame and engine, was raced by Joey until his death in 2000 during an Estonian road race. It’s one of the last big bikes he competed on, notably winning the 1999 Ulster Grand Prix in a thrilling duel and averaging over 120mph. The victory at 47 was his 24th at the Ulster GP.
Introduced in 1994, the RC45 succeeded the iconic RC30. Powered by a V4 with titanium connecting rods, it produced over 120 horsepower in race trim. Equipped with an aluminum twin-spar frame and Öhlins suspension, it was a cutting-edge superbike. Joey raced it at the Isle of Man TT, North West 200, and Dundrod Circuit.
Both bikes have been displayed at Joey’s Bar in Ballymoney and featured in 2025’s Joey 25 commemorations.
Bidding at Bonhams’ 2025 Autumn Sale can be done in person, absentee, over the telephone, or via the Bonhams app. Bonhams|Cars Motorcycles estimates that the 1988 Honda VFR750R RC30 and the 1999 Honda RVF750 RC45 could fetch as much as £100,000 each.
