Jonathan Rea brought a Honda CBR1000RR-R onto the pitch at Windsor Park for a very different kind of lap. The six-time WorldSBK champion rode a road-legal version of the superbike around the Clearer Twist National Stadium as part of a charity event supporting Cancer Fund for Children.

About 200 people from Northern Ireland’s wider football community took part. Players, coaches, former football figures, other sporting names, families and supporters gathered for the fundraiser, which marked ten years of partnership with the charity.

A 120-lap route to Daisy Lodge

The day’s main challenge was the Road to Daisy Lodge GAWA Relay. Participants collectively completed 120 laps of the pitch, representing the journey from Belfast to Daisy Lodge in Newcastle, County Down. Daisy Lodge is Cancer Fund for Children’s therapeutic centre, giving the stadium event a direct link to the organisation’s work with children and families affected by cancer.

Cancer Fund for Children has raised more than £176,000 over the past decade and is now aiming for £200,000 by the end of 2026. Rea had been testing Honda’s 2027 WorldSBK-spec CBR1000RR-R at Jerez only a few days earlier. At Windsor Park, however, the machine beneath him was the road-legal version used for the charity lap.

Former Northern Ireland captain Steven Davis said the partnership began in 2016. He also stressed that football can bring people together behind children and families affected by cancer. Rea’s appearance added a motorcycle-racing connection to a fundraiser built around the wider sporting community.