British motorcycling had a rougher week than the sales figures suggest. Superbike Factory, the Cheshire-based chain widely regarded as Europe’s largest used-motorcycle retailer, collapsed into administration on 20 July, when Michael Lennon, James Saunders and Robert Halliday of KR8 Advisory were appointed joint administrators. The six-site group — with dealerships including Donington Park, Bradford and Milton Keynes — ceased trading with immediate effect, putting around 275 jobs at risk. MCN spoke this week to staff and customers caught up in the fallout, including riders who had paid in full for bikes that were never delivered. The collapse is a company-specific story rather than an industry one: new motorcycle registrations were up almost 16% year-on-year to the end of June, so the wider market is in genuinely good health — Superbike Factory’s own accounts showed a heavy post-tax loss despite rising revenue, and warnings about the fallout from the motor-finance commission scandal.

On the regulatory side, the DVSA confirmed it is pushing ahead with the national rollout of its “Photos at Test” feature from 3 August, extending the scheme to around 2,500 garages across Great Britain. Testers will be able to photograph a bike during its MOT to prove it was physically present, tackling fraudulent “ghost” MOTs where certificates are issued with no vehicle ever attending. It won’t be compulsory immediately, but two earlier trials — covering 300-plus garages and 60,000 uploaded images — went well enough that wider mandatory use looks likely eventually.

There was a genuinely welcome safety story too: National Highways has partnered with the charity Chasing the Stigma on a 12-month pilot of roadside signs bearing QR codes, fitted to stretches of motorway and major A-roads in Sussex and Hampshire. Scanning one links struggling road users directly to the Hub of Hope, a database of more than 14,000 mental health services. National Highways estimates around 50 suspected suicides happen on its network each year — roughly a fifth of all fatalities recorded there.

On the technical front, spy photographers caught BMW testing a heavily revised next-generation S1000RR at the Nürburgring Nordschleife. The prototype carries a completely redesigned fairing with larger aero winglets, a more enclosed swingarm and reworked frame mounts, plus a bigger TFT dash and conventional switchgear replacing BMW’s familiar jog wheel — evidence of a genuinely new machine rather than a facelift, though it’s unlikely to reach production before 2027 or 2028.

For riders shopping for kit, Dainese has relaunched its Ignite 2 TX jacket in a VR46 edition marking Valentino Rossi’s career, complete with his trademark neon-yellow numbers. It’s a practical windproof, fleece-lined textile jacket with CE Level 1 Pro-Armor protection, priced from £299.

And in North Wales, the brand-new Moto Fest festival made its debut at Trac Môn Circuit on Anglesey from 24-26 July, run alongside a round of the FIM TrialGP World Championship. Nine-time trials world champion Toni Bou took the overall win on the coastal course, while festival-goers got beginner track sessions, adventure riding and guest appearances from the likes of John McGuinness — a strong start for an event with real ambitions.

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