Anstey sets the pace

Bruce Anstey was fastest in this evening’s Superbike session with the Australian missing out on a 130mph lap on an evening where the times were slower than expected. Anstey has been in strong form all week and has had a relatively trouble free time.

That calmness has been in stark contrast to Michael Dunlop. The Ulsterman had his first taste of the Buildbase BMW Superbike this evening and was immediately capable of setting fast times. However, as expected, the bike needed setup changes during the session with Dunlop changing springs after his first run on the bike since his switch from Yamaha yesterday. Dunlop finished the evening second fastest.

Guy Martin was third fastest tonight but when came back to the pits at the end of the session he immediately told his crew that he had lost in the region of 30 seconds after suffering from false neutrals throughout his second  lap on the Tyco BMW. Dan Kneen meanwhile came back to the pits and instantly made it clear that he was happy with the settings on his Superbike.

John McGuiness had a nervous end to the big bike session with the 21 times TT winner getting to the start ramp with a second to spare before the gate was closed at the start of pit lane. McGuiness finished the day having put laps on all four of his bikes with one lap on the Superbike, Supersport, Superstock and TT Zero machines.