Isle of Man TT boss Paul Phillips is confident that star attraction Michael Dunlop will be racing at the festival in 2015 and says the Ballymoney man has plenty of options still left open.

Dunlop has had talks with various manufacturer-backed teams but so far hasn’t signed on the dotted line. Phillips helped Dunlop to sort out his BMW deal in 2014 and is emphatic the 11-time winner will be on a bike capable of winning this year.

“This time last year, Michael was talking about taking a year out of the sport and I do think he was being serious about that. I don’t know for sure what was going on in his head at the time but there didn’t appear to be a Plan B before the BMW option came along and I worked closely with him on that to make that happen,” said Phillips, speaking to bikesportnews.com

“I didn’t want him missing the TT as the reigning champion. Michael’s an important part of the story and he genuinely puts bums on seats.

“He’s not saying the things he was 12 months ago, though, and he is fully focused on being on the grid for 2015. He will be at the TT and he will be on bikes that are capable of winning races.

“I don’t know what badge will be on the tank of those bikes or what sponsors’ names will adorn the fairings, but what I do know is that there remains no shortage of viable options for him.”

Read 'The Trouble with Michael Dunlop...' in Thursday's issue of Bikesport News