Isle of Man TT Round-Up: Michael Dunlop completes Supersport double with record-breaking 130mph lap

Michael Dunlop continued his stunning form at the 2023 Isle of Man TT this afternoon with a record-breaking victory in the second Supersport race.

Dunlop became the first rider to break the 130mph barrier onboard a Supersport bike, recording 130.403mph onboard his MD Racing Yamaha on the final lap. That was enough to hold off the challenge of Peter Hickman, who also went over 130mph with a 130.219mph lap.

It’s Dunlop’s fourth victory at the 2023, but more importantly it moves him onto 25 career victories at the iconic road racing event. He needs just one more victory from his three remaining races to draw level with his uncle, Joey Dunlop at the top of the all-time winners’ list.

It’s the third time that Dunlop has won four races in a week at the TT, with his previous successes coming in 2013 and 2014. Dunlop also completed the Supersport double in 2022. One more victory this year would see Dunlop match Ian Hutchinson’s 13-year record of five victories in a single week.

Dean Harrison completed the podium once again and also dipped beneath the previous record held by Dunlop after recording a 129.697mph lap. Davey Todd and Jamie Coward completed the top five.

James Hind came home in sixth onboard the Bass Tyre Services Yamaha R6, finishing ahead of Paul Jordan and Craig Neve. David Johnson and Dominic Herbertson completed the top 10.

Meanwhile, Ben and Tom Birchall made history once again in the second Sidecar race by setting a new lap record of 120.645mph on their way to victory.  It’s their 11^th consecutive victory and their 14^th in total at the TT.

Pete Founds and Jevan Walmsley finished second after also breaking the 120mph barrier, whilst Ryan and Callum Crowe completed the podium.

Friday’s race schedule

10:30 – Solo Warm-Up (1-lap)

11:45 – RL360 Superstock TT Race 2 (3-laps)

14:00 – Carole Nash Supertwin TT Race 2 (3-laps)

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Michael Dunlop is now the second most successful rider of all time at the Isle of Man TT after winning the opening Supertwin race at this year’s event.

Dunlop, racing his SC Project Paton machine, took the lead of the race at Glen Helen and didn’t look back. He now has 24 career victories at the TT, whilst it’s also his third victory at the 2023 TT having already won the opening Superbike and Supersport events.

The 34-year-old is now just two wins away from equalling the current record holder, and uncle, Joey Dunlop. With four races still to go, there’s a great chance of Michael taking over as the most successful rider in the event’s history.

Dunlop crossed the finish line in the Supertwin race with an advantage of 26.78 seconds over Mike Browne, which Jamie Coward completed the podium on the KTS Racing powered by Steadplan Kawasaki.

Peter Hickman and Josh Brookes completed the top five, whilst Pierre-Yves Bian came home in sixth. Dominic Herberton was seventh, ahead of Michael Rutter, Barry Furber and Rob Hodson.

Meanwhile, Hickman clinched his 10^th Isle of Man TT victory after dominating the first RL360 Superstock TT race.

The Monster Energy by FHO Racing BMW racer, who has been experiencing problems with his Superbike so far, crossed the line with an advantage of 23.17 seconds, ending Dunlop’s winning streak (Supersport & Superbike). Hickman now sits level with Giacomo Agostini, Stanley Woods and Ian Lougher on 10 victories.

Hickman took the lead of the race at Ballaugh on the opening lap and was unbeatable from that moment, recording a 133.979mph opening lap. Dunlop finished second, whilst Dean Harrison completed the podium for DAO Racing Kawasaki.

“Finally, the third race of the week and our first win of the 2023 TT event,” Hickman said. “The Monster Energy by FHO Racing BMW was absolutely fantastic, the Superstock machine has been perfect from the second I got on it and I was super happy with it early on, so we parked it and worked on sorting out the Superbike.

“The M 1000 RR worked right from the start and I managed to get a gap early on, which I wasn’t expecting if I’m honest. I got caught with a bit of traffic on the final lap, but overall we had mega pace and the bike feels so, so good.”

Davey Todd came home in fourth, whilst James Hillier pipped Jamie Coward for fifth spot on the LAMI OMG Racing Yamaha machine. Conor Cummins, who hasn’t been involved since Wednesday due to an infection, was seventh, ahead of David Johnson, Mike Browne and Shaun Anderson.

John McGuinness retired from the race at Guthrie’s his final lap, whilst Brookes also failed to finish the race on the opening lap at St Ninian’s.

Unfortunately, sad news followed the conclusion of the Supertwin race when it was confirmed that Spanish rider Raul Torras Martinez had been killed in an accident on the final lap.

The 46-year-old crashed at Alpine, between the 16^th and 17^th mile markers. Our thoughts are with Raul’s family, friends and team at this difficult time.

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Michael Dunlop has drawn level with John McGuinness as the second most successful Isle of Man TT rider in history after winning the opening Supersport and Superbike races.

Dunlop now has 23 TT race wins to his name and is only three victories away from equalling his uncle, Joey Dunlop at the top of the history books – an achievement which, given Michael’s current form, could be matched this year.

Dunlop led the Superbike race from start to finish, crossing the finish line with an advantage of 8.2 seconds, which was over 20 seconds at one stage, over Peter Hickman. Dunlop broke the race record by almost a minute, with a race time of 01:43:01.855. It’s Dunlop’s first victory in the premier class since 2018.

Meanwhile, Hickman narrowly missed out on setting a new outright lap record on his final circulation, posting a speed of 135.445mph on the Monster Energy by FHO Racing BMW M1000 RR. Remarkably, Hickman was able to finish second despite reportedly not using a quickshifter and suffering with a brake issue.

Dean Harrison completed the podium, which James Hillier and Jamie Coward crossed the line in fourth and fifth respectively. John McGuinness was sixth for Honda Racing UK, whilst Josh Brookes, returning to the TT after five years, was seventh on the second of the FHO Racing BMW machines.

Dominic Herbertson was eighth and joined the illusive 130mph club, whilst Michael Rutter and Shaun Anderson completed the top 10. Davey Todd returned to the pits at the end of lap three and retired from the race.

Dunlop also dominated Saturday’s Supersport race onboard his MD Racing Yamaha R6, after taking the lead midway through the opening lap. He crossed the line with a 12.3-second advantage over Hickman to secure his 10^th Supersport TT victory. Dunlop won both 600cc races in 2022 as well.

Hickman and Harrison went head-to-head once again for the runner-up spot, with the latter eventually losing out by just 0.39 seconds. Coward, Todd and Hillier completed the top six, ahead of Paul Jordan, David Johnston, Rob Hodson and James Hind.

Meanwhile, Ben and Tom Birchall created history in the Sidecar race by becoming the first crew to lap the 37.7-mile Mountain Course at 120mph.

The brothers posted the new record speed of 120.357mph on the second lap, crossing the finish line with a winning margin of 24.066 seconds over Pete Founds and Jevan Walmsley. It’s the Birchall’s 10^th consecutive victory at the TT, and their 13^th overall.

John Holden and Maxime Vasseur completed the podium in third ahead of Steve and Matty Ramsden. Bryan and Phil Hyde completed the top five in the opening race.

Race day three takes place on Tuesday June 6. The schedule is as follows:

10:30 – Solo warm-up lap

10:50 – Sidecar Shakedown (1 Lap)

11:45 – RL360 Superstock TT Race 1 (3 Laps)

14:00 – Carole Nash Supertwin TT Race 1 (3 Laps)