Michael Dunlop teases “something special” with Marco Simoncelli bike

Isle of Man TT superstar Michael Dunlop has teased “something special” with a picture of him working on a Gilera with the livery of late MotoGP rider Marco Simoncelli.

The 36-time TT winner took to his social media channels to post a picture of him with the Gilera 250cc grand prix bike decked out in Marco Simoncelli’s livery.

It’s unclear what Dunlop is up to, but he posted images of himself with the bike with the caption, “Now for something special”.

He also posted a video of him revving the ex-grand prix machine.

Could Dunlop race the bike on the Isle of Man next year?

Dunlop loves 250cc machinery, finding success at the Classic TT this year on a Honda two-stroke bike.

It’s not impossible that Dunlop could be prepping the bike to bring it to the Classic TT next year in the Lightweight class.

The Gilera in question features the Metis livery Simoncelli used in 2008 when he won the 250cc world championship.

It’s not clear if the bike Dunlop posted about is an ex-Simoncelli bike, or simply carries his colours in tribute.

Simoncelli remains a popular figure 15 years on from his death

The timing of Dunlop’s post is intriguing, as this year marks the 15th anniversary of Simoncelli’s tragic death.

The Italian made his MotoGP debut in 2010 with the Gresini Honda team, remaining with the outfit in 2011.

He scored his maiden MotoGP podium at Brno that year, before taking a second in Australia on the same day Casey Stoner won his second world title.

But a week later, Simoncelli was tragically killed in a crash at the start of the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang that involved Colin Edwards and Valentino Rossi.

Simoncelli was honoured in 2012 when the Misano circuit was renamed in his honour, while his father Paolo runs the SIC58 Squadra Corse outfit in Moto3.

At this year’s San Marino Grand Prix, Gresini racing ran a special San Carlo-inspired livery in memory of Simoncelli.