Will Hickman succeed Irwin as NW200 Superbike king?
Isle of Man TT course lap record holder Peter Hickman targets a first North West Superbike win to add to the two Superstock wins he has achieved so far and his 2024 Supertwins double.The 38-year-old returns to the international meeting with a fleet of machines which include 8Ten Racing BMWs for the big bike classes.The Lincolnshire rider's career to date includes finishing in the top six in the overall British Superbike standings on four occasions.He has 14 TT wins to his name, including three in the Superbike race and three in the Senior.Hickman is also a four-time winner of the Macau Grand Prix and secured a record seven wins at the most recent running of the Ulster Grand Prix in 2019, when he also set the course lap record.Hickman has stood on the podium 10 times already at the North West, holds the Supersport lap record and his best lap speed of 124.799mph sees him sit fourth in the all-time list of fastest laps.He is again contending the British Superbike Championship in 2025.
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Belfast Telegraph
2 days ago
- Belfast Telegraph
Michael Dunlop sets lap record on way to 33rd TT victory: ‘It's a great wee bike'
The Northern Ireland rider's record haul of victories around the 37.73-mile Mountain Course now stands at a staggering 33 wins ahead of today's final Senior race. Dunlop has also won both Supersport races this year and hasn't been off the podium in any race he has started, finishing second in the Superbike race and earning two thirds in the Superstock races. He went into the Entire Cover Insurance Supertwin race as the hot favourite following a wide-margin win over Manx rider Michael Evans in the opener. True to form, Dunlop was rarely threatened, opening a lead of 12 seconds over Davey Todd (Milenco by Padgett's Paton) after the first of three laps. He lost a few seconds during his pit-stop to Todd, but Dunlop quickly restored a commanding advantage of 14.5s by the end of the penultimate lap. He blasted the lap record on his final circuit with a speed of 123.056mph to win by 26.77s from Todd, with Dominic Herbertson 20.5s back in third on the Melbray Racing Paton. Afterwards, Dunlop said he was surprised by his lap record feat and felt he had rolled off the pace slightly to nurse his Paton home safely for another TT success. 'Very nice, was that on the last lap?' Dunlop said. 'I'm a bit surprised because I backed off a little bit because I saw I had a bit of a lead. 'It [gap] dropped away down after the pit-stop and came back up again. I said 'I'll get a push on here', and then on the last lap we just nursed it. 'That's three Patons in here and people say it's because I'm on a Paton [wins races]. 'They are a great wee bike and the bike has been mint, that's a double again. 'I'd like to have a lap on my own without any stress to see what I could really do but thanks to everybody. 'My main thing is it's another win under the belt. I'm happy enough and my job is to win the race.' Giving his thoughts on his chances in today's Senior, Dunlop added: 'I'll have and that's four this week already, so it's a bit of an achievement again, so I'm happy. We'll just keep going and see what we're made of.' Runner-up Todd said he gave it his all but claimed his Paton was no match for Dunlop's machine. 'We're never going to compete with that thing, there's absolutely zero chance, but not taking anything away from Michael because he's riding super hard,' said Todd. 'I rode that as hard as I could and I'm super-stoke to get the Milenco by Padgett's team up on the box again. 'Clive [Padgett] bought this Paton here and tried to make the best of it. 'I really struggled in that first race and I think the boys really got their heads together, and Clive's given me a great bike.' Herbertson was toasting his second TT podium after previously finishing on the rostrum in the Supertwin class last year on a Paton for John Burrows' team. 'I'm absolutely over the moon,' he said. 'The team bought a Paton, we've dug in and I don't know what to say. 'Five-and-a-half weeks to turn this around and I cannot thank everyone enough. 'Being number 13 – unlucky for some but not for us.' Manx rider Michael Evans, second in race one, retired on the opening lap, while Rob Hodson from Wigan – third in the opening Supertwin race – dropped out with a problem while lying third. Paul Jordan from Magherafelt came home in fourth on the Jackson Racing Aprilia, 3.1s behind Herbertson, with Mike Browne (KMR/Jack Reid Cars Kawasaki) and Adam McLean (Flitwick Motorcycles Yamaha) from Tobermore completing the top six.
Belfast Telegraph
2 days ago
- Belfast Telegraph
Dean Harrison completes Isle of Man TT Superstock double: ‘I can go fast, I've proved that'
Harrison took advantage of Davey Todd's pit-stop woe when the 8TEN Racing rider struggled to restart his BMW machine, losing approximately 12 seconds, while fellow top rival Michael Dunlop had more issues with his MD Racing BMW after an electronics problem in the first race. Harrison won the three-lap Opul Superstock race – delayed from 10:45am until 2:30pm because of damp patches – by 16 seconds from a disappointed Todd, who had 32 seconds in hand over Dunlop. 'Massive thanks to the whole team and Honda, everyone's put a brilliant bike together and it's great to see the Honda Fireblade on P1,' said Harrison. 'We're constantly trying to adapt. Everyone's in the same boat here, really, it's such a difficult place. Trying to set your bike up around here is a bit of a compromise. 'We had a little bit of a stability issue which we've near enough cured now, and it just means that I can ride the bike how I want to ride the bike. 'I can go fast, I've proved that this week; I just need a bit of luck on my side on the day and here we are.' Harrison's wins are his first at the TT since 2019 and the Isle of Man-based Bradford man could not hide his elation in the winners' enclosure. 'Words can't describe it,' he added. 'I'm absolutely over the moon to get two wins in the Superstock race. 'I got off to a real hard start, I read my pit board and I was P1, P2, and P1 over the Mountain. I saw P1 +13 coming out of Glen Helen on lap two, I thought 'Oh'. 'I carried on as hard as I could and thought, 'I'll carry on this lap to try and manage that, if I can keep that lead the same there's no way someone's going to make 13 or 14 seconds on me in a lap'. 'So, I just kept my head down and I got to P1 +20, and I just read my board from there and just managed it and sort of knocked it off a little bit on the last lap and just brought it home.' Todd won last year's only Superstock race but the Saltburn-by-the-Sea man had to settle for the runner-up spot again after finishing second in the opening race. 'Another frustrating one,' Todd said. 'I'm just disappointed. 'I really felt like we could challenge for that win there, made some improvements to the bike. Then it didn't start in the pit-stop – not a clue why. 'I had the same thing last year, for a different reason, but it just wouldn't start. 'I felt like I had a really steady first lap and we were in the mix there. 'I guess I half-gave-up [after the pit stop] because you're not going to reel that time back on someone like Dean [Harrison] when he's riding the way he is.' Dunlop was equally dismayed after struggling on the first lap especially with his BMW, when Dunlop dropped to 20th by Glen Helen after running on at Braddan. 'I don't know what's going on, we tried everything but something's not working for some reason,' he said. 'Then I ran on – I just couldn't get a gear – I ran on at Braddan and then I knew that was the race [over] after that. 'You can't drop time against these boys and it was just damage limitation after that.' Ian Hutchinson had been in the hunt for a podium on the opening lap before retiring on the MLav Racing BMW. Fourth went to James Hillier on the Muc-Off Honda from Conor Cummins on the Burrows/RK Racing BMW, while Australian Josh Brookes rounded out the top six on the Jackson Racing Honda. Brookes' team-mate Paul Jordan was forced out with a problem.
BBC News
2 days ago
- BBC News
Harrison races to Isle of Man TT Superstock double
Dean Harrison made it a double in the Superstock class at this year's Isle of Man TT by taking victory in Friday's three-lap race over the Mountain was a fifth TT victory of the Honda Racing rider's career and his fifth podium finish of the 2025 36-year-old had 16 seconds to spare over runner-up, Davey Todd on the 8TEN Racing BMW, with Michael Dunlop a further 32.8 seconds in arrears in third on his MD Racing BMW, the same top three as in the first Superstock outing on and Todd both had spells at the head of the timesheets on lap one but by the end of the first circuit it was the Honda rider who had a narrow advantage of half a second thanks to the fastest lap of the race at hopes of a win effectively ended however when his bike failed to fire after his pit-stop and he lost 12 seconds, one of his mechanics having to push the machine almost the entire length of pitlane before it could be coaxed back into controlled the race from the front thereafter to take victory."Words can't describe it, what it's like to do a double in the Superstock class," said the Bradford rider, who is now resident in Laxey in the Isle of Man."I got off to a real hard start and the lead was swapping but coming out of Glen Helen on lap two I saw '+13' on my board and then I kept going as hard as I could, kept the head down," he added on TT Plus."I saw the advantage was '+20' so I managed my lead to the finish from there." Pit-stop misfortune ends Todd hopes Harrison led by 2.2 seconds at Glen Helen on the first lap but Todd battled back and moved in front by just two hundredths of a second by Ramsey Hairpin.A strong response over the mountain section saw Harrison regain top spot by 1.1 seconds but the leader's cushion over his fellow Yorkshireman was just 0.5 seconds when the riders came into the so often in the context of TT racing, there was drama in the pits however as Todd's challenge petered out as a result of the time he lost trying to get his bike to fire. His deficit after the second lap increased to 20 seconds and he was forced to settle for second."I'm disappointed. I really thought we could challenge for that win but the bike just wouldn't start after the pitstop."We had made improvements to the bike and I went really steady on the first lap and was in the mix."I'm gutted for the team as they have all worked so hard. We don't deserve this bad luck really."Dunlop was never in contention for the win on this occasion as he struggled with an electronic issue from the outset, overshooting at Braddan Bridge on lap one and suffering a top speed deficit with his record 32-time winner battled back from the time lost in that setback as he worked his way up the leaderboard to claim the 50th rostrum finish of his TT career. James Hillier finished fourth, with Conor Cummins fifth and Josh Brookes rounding out the top TT winner Ian Hutchinson was contending for a podium place when he retired at Ramsey Hairpin. Superstock TT race two results 1 Dean Harrison (Eng, Honda)2 Davey Todd (Eng, BMW)3 Michael Dunlop (NI, BMW)4 James Hillier (Eng, Honda)5 Conor Cummins (IOM, BMW)6 Josh Brookes (Aus, Honda)7 Nathan Harrison (IOM, Honda)8 John McGuinness (Eng, Honda)
