Michael Dunlop Extends Isle of Man TT Supersport Winning Streak
Michael Dunlop has increased his record number of wins at the Isle of Man TT to 36 by securing victories in Supersport race two and Sportbike race one on Friday.
Dunlop continued his dominance of the Supersport class at the renowned international road race by taking his second victory of the week in that category and followed that up with a record-breaking success in the Sportbike two-lapper.
The Northern Ireland rider's double in the Supersports means he has won 17 Supersport TT races, and remarkably the past 10 in succession. That unbeaten run stretches from 2022 to the present day.
Supersport Race Two
Race two in the middleweight class followed a similar pattern to Tuesday's first race as Dunlop trailed Honda Racing's Dean Harrison in the early stages but a quicker pit-stop by the Scars Racing/MD Racing rider's crew saw him assume the lead and gradually extend his advantage to claim a convincing success.
The 37-year-old's eventual winning margin after three laps of the 37.73-mile Mountain Course was 26.126 seconds, with Triumph-mounted Peter Hickman a further 13.5 seconds behind in third to make it the same podium as in race one.
Harrison led by 1.4 seconds at Glen Helen on the opening lap and built a 3.85-second advantage by The Bungalow timing point. That cushion was reduced slightly to 3.66 seconds by the end of the first circuit as Harrison clocked the fastest ever Supersport lap from a standing start at 129.218 mph.
Dunlop gained five seconds in the pits, however, to move ahead as they went out on lap two. The Ducati V2 rider had 16 seconds to spare over his nearest rival by the end of the second lap and continued to incrementally increase his advantage until the chequered flag.
"The career's been good round here. It's fantastic. The bike was phenomenal, really mint," said Dunlop on Manx Radio Motorsport after his triumph.
"The boys were great in the pit-stop and I knew I needed to up my game on the second lap, so I pushed on."
Nine of the Ballymoney rider's Supersport wins have come on Yamaha machinery, four on Ducatis, and four on Hondas.
Harrison said he was "happy" with a second-place finish, explaining that his bike was "faultless" throughout the race.
"There's not a lot you can do. That was the fastest I've ever gone on the 600 Honda, the bike never missed a beat," he explained.
Republic of Ireland rider Mike Browne edged out Paul Jordan by 0.9 seconds for fourth spot, with Australian Josh Brookes rounding out the top six, 1.6 seconds behind Jordan.
Supertwin Success
Dunlop asserted his authority on the Sportbike class from the start of the race and was 28.775 seconds ahead of runner-up Browne by the end of the race, with Jordan occupying the final rostrum place.
The County Antrim rider was in front by 3.7 seconds on the timesheets at the first timing point at Glen Helen but had expanded his lead to 15.8 seconds by The Bungalow and then 17.5 seconds by the conclusion of lap one.
The Paton Supertwin rider's first circuit bettered his three-year-old lap record for the class, Dunlop circulating at an average speed of 123.637 mph.
The victor improved on that on lap two with a speed of 124.350 mph, 18 minutes 10.725 seconds, 13 seconds inside his own previous benchmark from 2023.
"The bike was superb so thanks to the Paton boys. The bike was very good to me," the race winner told TT Plus post-race.
"I didn't feel like I was overly pushing on the second lap either. I had a bit left in the tank."
Browne won the battle for second position on another Paton, having an advantage of just 0.66 seconds over Jordan, on his Aprilia, by the end of the race.
Both those riders achieved their third podium finishes at the TT and both were inside the previous lap record speed on their second lap.
Hickman, Jamie Coward, and Manx rider Joe Yeardsley completed the top six leaderboard.
Supersport Race Two Result
[Results not provided]
Sportbike Race One Result
[Results not provided]
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