Sidecar lap 1
Birchalls
Holden/Cain
Reeves/Wilkes
117.5 for Birchall, new lap record
Birchalls
Holden/Cain
Reeves/Wilkes
117.5 for Birchall, new lap record
TT 2018 discussion, results and spoilers.
- Thread starter AntG
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- 2018 discussion results spoilers
Sidecar lap 2
Birchalls (another lap record 118.694!!!)
Holden/Cain
Reeves/Wilkes
Birchalls (another lap record 118.694!!!)
Holden/Cain
Reeves/Wilkes
Birchalls win, they eased off on lap 3 and still managed a 117.7mph lap, all 3 laps were inside the standing lap record which they held anyway from last year.
John Holden and Lee Cain came second setting a 117.3 lap, not bad for a 60 year old eh? It turns out that the competitors involved in the crash in the red flagged race earlier were Johns wife Fiona and his father in law Tony Baker.
Tim Reeves and Mark Wilkes came 3rd with Reeves setting his personal best lap at 115.7.
What a day to start the racing at TT 2018, an emotional win for the Tyco BMW team in the Superbike race, a new race record from Michael Dunlop, a new outright lap record for Dean Harrison who retired with clutch trouble on lap 4 and a record breaking Sidecar race
Enough updates from me I'm afraid as I'm off to the Island tomorrow morning, see you all a week tomorrow
John Holden and Lee Cain came second setting a 117.3 lap, not bad for a 60 year old eh? It turns out that the competitors involved in the crash in the red flagged race earlier were Johns wife Fiona and his father in law Tony Baker.
Tim Reeves and Mark Wilkes came 3rd with Reeves setting his personal best lap at 115.7.
What a day to start the racing at TT 2018, an emotional win for the Tyco BMW team in the Superbike race, a new race record from Michael Dunlop, a new outright lap record for Dean Harrison who retired with clutch trouble on lap 4 and a record breaking Sidecar race
Enough updates from me I'm afraid as I'm off to the Island tomorrow morning, see you all a week tomorrow
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So do we know what happened to Dean's silicone Kawasaki and why it went bang?
I feel for Dean, I really do, he deserved to win with that 134.4 standings start, I thought he could maybe have pushed a 135 on a flyer.
Having said that, I am chuffed for the Tyco boys, it was nice to see them have the win and dedicate it to Dan.
I feel for Dean, I really do, he deserved to win with that 134.4 standings start, I thought he could maybe have pushed a 135 on a flyer.
Having said that, I am chuffed for the Tyco boys, it was nice to see them have the win and dedicate it to Dan.
Wow, Hicky on the stockers was amazing, over 134 average on a stock bike.
Incredible, I am glad he won.
I feel for Michael being delayed by back markers a bit, but it's nice to have different people winning, and he did benefit from Dean's bad luck in the superbikes.
From a racing perspective it's been a great TT so far.
Incredible, I am glad he won.
I feel for Michael being delayed by back markers a bit, but it's nice to have different people winning, and he did benefit from Dean's bad luck in the superbikes.
From a racing perspective it's been a great TT so far.
You got that right, missus. The guy can hardly walk and yet he's still blasting around.
If he is fit for next year then he will be fighting for wins, no doubt about it.
SuperSport race 2 was something else too. Dean thoroughly deserved the win, he was pulling away from Michael before any penalties.
Although, I have to admit that I didn't see what Michael got penalised for?
Can't wait for the Senior today, the smart money has to be on Dean.
I reckon-
Dean
Hicky
Michael
Although, I have to admit that I didn't see what Michael got penalised for?
Can't wait for the Senior today, the smart money has to be on Dean.
I reckon-
Dean
Hicky
Michael
Done see it posted so will post it here - from Cameron Donald's twitter account regarding Dan Kneen and relates to Prince William's visit to the TT recently.
Post is from Dan's brother
https://twitter.com/jopack1/status/1004682940683603969
Post is from Dan's brother
https://twitter.com/jopack1/status/1004682940683603969
Well what a week of racing that was!
Hicky has been knocking on the door for a couple of years now and great to see him take 2 wins in record breaking style.
Harrison had a great TT as well, unlucky to not come out of it with 2 wins himself, it was also good to see Conor Cummins back on form as well.
Michael Dunlop had a mixed bag, managed to win 3 races and get another podium but had both good and bad fortune, he inherited the win in the Superbike and Lightweight races due to the misfortunes of Dean Harrison and Ivan Lintin but was in record breaking form in the first Supersport race and had a bit of bad luck himself getting caught up in backmarkers in the Superstock when there was still no more than a second in it.
Personally I think when it came to the Tyco BMW MD has paid for his lack of racing this year, prior to the TT that superbike had done a 5 lap race around Cookstown and about a dozen laps at the North West 200 and in the Senior it was all over the place and despite the track conditions this year he still never topped his best laps around the Island which he set on Stuart Hickens BMW in 2016, in fact his times in the Senior were down on the Suzuki he was riding last year. His best lap this year was set on his own BMW Superstock bike rather than the factory supported Tyco bike.
I can't see anyone beating the Birchall boys for some time and it just goes to show how different circuit racing is compared to the TT because Tim Reeves is running away with the World Championship this year but wasn't even close to the Birchalls at the TT, a great couple of podium positions for John Holden despite the injuries to his wife Fiona and his father in law Tony Baker.
Good run by Derek McGee in the Lightweight to get his first TT podium as well.
Shame for James Hillier smashing his sump at the bottom of Barregarrow in the Senior after another strong week at the TT which is being rumoured to be his last TT, though nothing has been confirmed yet.
Best wishes to Steve Mercer who is still very ill in hospital.
RIP to Dan Kneen and Adam Lyon.
Hicky has been knocking on the door for a couple of years now and great to see him take 2 wins in record breaking style.
Harrison had a great TT as well, unlucky to not come out of it with 2 wins himself, it was also good to see Conor Cummins back on form as well.
Michael Dunlop had a mixed bag, managed to win 3 races and get another podium but had both good and bad fortune, he inherited the win in the Superbike and Lightweight races due to the misfortunes of Dean Harrison and Ivan Lintin but was in record breaking form in the first Supersport race and had a bit of bad luck himself getting caught up in backmarkers in the Superstock when there was still no more than a second in it.
Personally I think when it came to the Tyco BMW MD has paid for his lack of racing this year, prior to the TT that superbike had done a 5 lap race around Cookstown and about a dozen laps at the North West 200 and in the Senior it was all over the place and despite the track conditions this year he still never topped his best laps around the Island which he set on Stuart Hickens BMW in 2016, in fact his times in the Senior were down on the Suzuki he was riding last year. His best lap this year was set on his own BMW Superstock bike rather than the factory supported Tyco bike.
I can't see anyone beating the Birchall boys for some time and it just goes to show how different circuit racing is compared to the TT because Tim Reeves is running away with the World Championship this year but wasn't even close to the Birchalls at the TT, a great couple of podium positions for John Holden despite the injuries to his wife Fiona and his father in law Tony Baker.
Good run by Derek McGee in the Lightweight to get his first TT podium as well.
Shame for James Hillier smashing his sump at the bottom of Barregarrow in the Senior after another strong week at the TT which is being rumoured to be his last TT, though nothing has been confirmed yet.
Best wishes to Steve Mercer who is still very ill in hospital.
RIP to Dan Kneen and Adam Lyon.
A very nice round up, mate, well put.
The 135.4 was the highlight of the week for me. I suppose if Hicky hadn't have retired in the first SBK race then we might've had a taste of things to come.
Dean's 134.4 standing start was incredible as well, closely followed by the 134 stocker lap by Hicky.
I know it's focusing on the prestige classes, but I suppose these really stick out for me because they smashed the average time barriers.
I really cannot overstate the respect I have for every person that races a bike around the island, regardless of the class.
That's probably the best Senior since 1992 as well, it was certainly closer, it was fantastic tension listening to the circuit commentary as Hickman was reeling Harrison in on that last lap. A 226 mile race won by 2.1 seconds, wow!
I'd still love to see how Josh Brookes would do on a BMW though, he got a very solid 5th place on the Norton but was over 3 minutes behind Hickman.
I'd still love to see how Josh Brookes would do on a BMW though, he got a very solid 5th place on the Norton but was over 3 minutes behind Hickman.
Yeah, clearly the BM or Kwak are the bikes to be on.
Not only would I like to see Josh on one of those, on flip side, I can't help but wonder if Hutchy, once fit, could make that Honda work. I have negligible faith in that bike.
One thing I love about Josh's riding and it doesn't matter if it's the Mountain at Caldwell, or on the Island, he really and I mean REALLY commits to the jumps. Utterly spectacular.
One quick question for you, Ant, do you know why we don't see better Ducati performance on the Island, especially given Glen Irwin's runs at the North West?
Nobody who runs at the front of the TT ever really rides a Ducati, the only ones you see are privateers, I don't recall any this year. The last time I recall somebody giving it a really good go was McGuinness riding one of Paul Birds Ducatis in 2003 and got a couple of podiums.
There is a stigma attached to Ducatis and the TT based on how poor the various incarnations fared in the 90's.
Right, I didn't know if there was anything more substantive, perhaps to do with the distances involved in the SBK and Senior.
Like I said, the reason I asked was in relation to the North West, that's 2 years and 2 wins in the SBK race. I know that Glen Irwin is a local lad to the NW so knows the roads, but even so, the bike left a good account of itself, so I thought it would be worth a team running them at the TT (with a decent rider that is).
Like I said, the reason I asked was in relation to the North West, that's 2 years and 2 wins in the SBK race. I know that Glen Irwin is a local lad to the NW so knows the roads, but even so, the bike left a good account of itself, so I thought it would be worth a team running them at the TT (with a decent rider that is).
Thing is the only guy who runs competitive Ducatis who is likely to do the TT is Paul Bird and I don't think he's really fussed about the TT anymore, I know he ran Hutchy in 2015 and provided technical support to Michael Dunlop in 2011 but I don't think he's consistently ran a roads team year after year since the days when he ran the Stobart Honda team over 10 years ago. BSB is his bread and butter but I think he only runs Irwin at the North West because he's a local lad and runs him at Macau because the organisers pay the expenses.
There's footage on youtube of this, it's taken by a spectator at Barregarrow. It is crazy, he went in there so so fast and it made a hell of a noise.
Yeah I think he said he normally goes too steady on the first lap so really wanted to go for it in this one and went in way too hot and cracked his sump.
I've just watched the Senior highlights and .... me Michaels bike was a horror show wasn't it? Way, way down on the speeds he was setting a couple of years ago, his overall race time in the Senior was slower than his overall time in the same race in 2013.
I think it was too little too late for MD on the Tyco bike, spent too much of this year ....... about deciding what to ride while the likes of Hickman and Harrison were testing and racing. Hopefully he sticks with the team for some continuity and has a proper pre-season next year. He did 133.9(16mins 53secs) from a standing start 2 years ago, I think he'd easily knock 10 seconds off that on a flying lap with a well sorted bike putting him in the 135 times, his teammate being killed can't have been easy for him either.
