Paul Jordan takes victory in the Junior Classic TT Race

Paul Jordan won a dramatic Historic Junior Classic TT race on Saturday afternoon, the Davies Motorsport Honda rider taking victory for the second year in a row by 1m37s from Dominic Herbertson (Nigel Haith Racing) and John McGuinness MBE (Steadplan Racing Honda). 

Dean Harrison (Craven Classic Racing/Ted Woof Honda) led in the early stages before retiring at Ballaugh and that allowed Mike Browne (Melbray Racing Honda) to take over. He set a new class lap record of 105.322mph on the opening lap but went out at Barregarrow on the second and final lap with a puncture whilst Harrison’s team-mate Jamie Coward was another high-profile retirement. 

Getting underway at 5.30pm, there were perfect conditions all around the Mountain Course and it was Harrison who led at Glen Helen on the opening lap, his advantage over Browne 3.964s with Michael Evans (Ken Rutter Racing Honda) a further 1.847s back in third. Coward, Jordan and Stefano Bonetti (Speed Shadow Racing Yamaha) slotted into fourth to sixth. 
 
Over Ballaugh Bridge for the first time and it was all change as Browne took over at front, his sector time from Glen Helen over eight seconds quicker than Harrison’s. Evans was only three-quarters of a second behind Harrison in third whilst Coward and Jordan in fourth and fifth were less than two seconds apart. 
 
Browne’s lead was up to 10.9s at Ramsey Hairpin but it was now Evans in second with Harrison having retired at Ballaugh. That promoted his team-mate Coward into the final podium position and he’d pulled 3.2s clear of Jordan as Joe Yeardsley on the second Ken Rutter Racing and Herbertson moved up to fifth and sixth respectively. 
 
Browne extended his lead over Evans to 14.9s at the Bungalow but it was even closer for third with Coward and Jordan now only 0.341s whilst McGuinness had closed to within 1.1s of Herbertson. 
 
With a new lap record of 105.322mph, a second quicker than Lee Johnston’s previous best set in 2014, Browne’s lead at the end of the opening lap was up to 27.2s and it was Jordan who was now second, the Northern Irishman having turned his deficit to Coward into a 1.226s advantage – Evans was out though having retired at the Creg ny Baa. 

That meant Yeardsley was now fourth with Herbertson and McGuinness up to fifth and sixth with just 0.443s between them but Yeardsley pulled into the pits to retire so that promoted them up another position. The Manxman’s demise helped Harley Rushton move up to sixth. 
 
Through Glen Helen for the second and final time and Browne’s lead was almost half a minute but the battle for second looked like it would go all the way as there was still only 2.6s between Jordan and Coward. 
 
However, just as it looked like Browne had the race in the bag he was missing at Ballaugh and the news came through that he’d stopped at Barregarrow with a puncture, Jordan now leading the race from Coward by 4.6s. McGuinness was up to third but Herbertson was matching him in each sector, the gap over the famous bridge still 1.1s. 
 
Further drama then came with Coward retiring at Ballaugh, just like team-mate Harrison had, but round Ramsey Hairpin for the final time, Jordan’s lead stood at 1m22s – and it was Herbertson now in second having had a strong run from Ballaugh, the gap between him and McGuinness now 3.5s. 
 
As the final third of the lap progressed, Herbertson was looking more secure in second but at the front, no one was stopping Jordan and he won for the second year in a row, his eventual winning margin over Herbertson a commanding 1m37s. 

McGuinness completed the podium in third but there was disappointment for Rushton as he retired on the Mountain Mile and that meant it was Dan Sayle (John Chapman Racing Honda) who finished fourth from Will Loder (Greeves Oulton) and James Chawke (DD Racing Honda). 
 
The top ten was completed by Andy Hornby (HEL Performance Honda), Phil McGurk (Chris Hughes Racing Honda), newcomer Kyle Parkes (Torry Hill Chesnut Rencing Honda) and Jeffrey Vermeulen (Van Giersbergen Motorenrevisie Ducati) whilst 14-time Sidecar TT race winner Ben Birchall (Ruthless Racing Honda) had a fine ride into 11th with a final lap of 94.665mph. 
 
The Historic Junior Classic TT celebrates an era when the Isle of Man TT formed part of the FIM Motorcycle World Championship. Showcasing the 350cc machines that defined Grand Prix and TT racing during the 1960s and early 1970s, the class provides a link to a significant chapter in the TT’s history, allowing fans to experience these motorcycles in competition around the Mountain Course once again.

Michael Dunlop wins Formula One Classic TT

Michael Dunlop MBE set lap and race records on his way to winning the three-lap Formula One Classic TT race on Sunday afternoon, the Team Classic Suzuki rider coming home 20.5s ahead of Jamie Coward (Greenall Racing Kawasaki) and Mike Browne (Electric Van Company Kawasaki). 
 
Browne led on lap one, but Dunlop overhauled him at Glen Helen on the second lap. Dunlop’s final lap of 129.078mph saw the Ulsterman break Bruce Anstey’s nine-year-old lap record, his race winning time more than a minute quicker than the previous mark. 
 
With a mixture of grey cloud and sunny skies around the Mountain Course, the race got underway at 1.45pm, 15 minutes later than scheduled, and it was Browne who led at Glen Helen on the opening lap, 2.2s ahead of Dunlop with Dominic Herbertson (TAS/Adam Hewitt Kawasaki) a further 2.7s back in third. Coward, Nathan Harrison (Greenall Racing Kawasaki) and David Johnson (Steadplan Racing Kawasaki) completed the early top six. 
 
By Ballaugh, Browne’s lead over Dunlop was up to 3.3s with Coward now up to third but it remained close with third to sixth separated by two seconds. Browne was the quickest through the Sulby speed trap at 175.492mph. Shaun Anderson was an early retirement, stopping at Laurel Bank. Frenchman Amalric Blanc was also out of luck having stopped at Greeba Castle. 
 
Through Ramsey Hairpin for the first time, Browne’s lead over Dunlop had crept up to 3.9s as Harrison moved ahead of Herbertson for fourth and at the end of lap, the riders came in for their compulsory pit lap, a first lap speed of 127.217mph giving Browne a lead of four seconds over Dunlop (126.739mph). 

Coward (126.190mph) remained in third, just one second ahead of Harrison (126.072mph), Herbertson (125.325mph), Johnson (125.187mph) as Brian McCormack on a third Greenall Racing Kawasaki, Conor Cummins (Steadplan Racing Kawasaki), Michael Sweeney (Mistral Racing Kawasaki) and Julian Trummer (TC Racing/DP Coldplaning Kawasaki) completed the top ten. Peter Hickman (WizNorton) was out though, retiring at the pits. 
 
Dunlop had the quicker pit stop and turned his deficit to Browne into a 2.7s advantage at Glen Helen on lap two with Coward only four seconds adrift in third. Harrison was a similar distance back in fourth and it was now Johnson who was in fifth, Herbertson dropping back to sixth. 

Dunlop stretched his lead over Browne to 5.2s at Ballaugh with the latter and Coward setting almost identical sector times on the run from Glen Helen. One man who’d lost time though was Cummins and he dropped back from 7th to 11th. 

At the head of the field, Dunlop was pressing on and his lead had gone out to 9.2s at Ramsey as Coward closed to within 3.4s of Browne whilst further back fifth placed Johnson was only two seconds ahead of Herbertson. Cummins moved back up to tenth at the expense of fellow Manxman Joe Yeardsley (Mistral Racing Kawasaki). 
 
A second lap speed of 124.734mph gave Dunlop a lead of 14.3s as he started his final lap with Browne, who was now leading on the road, holding a 3.2s advantage over Coward. Harrison and Johnson remained in fourth and fifth, but Herbertson was out at the Nook and that promoted McCormack up the order to sixth. 
 
Sweeping round the left hander of Glen Helen for the final time, Dunlop’s charge continued and he’d pulled 19.1s clear of Browne but the battle for second was hotting up as Coward had closed to within 1.1s of the Irishman.  

And by Ballaugh, Coward had taken over the runners-up position, moving 2.4s clear of his fellow Kawasaki rider. But two riders out of luck on the final lap were McCormack and Cummins, McCormack falling at Greeba Castle and Cummins retiring at Barregarrow. McCormack was reported to be conscious with a possible leg injury. 
 
A stunning final lap of 129.078mph – 13s better than Bruce Anstey’s previous lap record of 127.496mph – gave Dunlop his fifth Formula One Classic TT victory since 2013, 20.5s clear of Coward (128.712mph) with three of the first four riders all breaking the previous lap record. 
 
Browne held on for third and the final podium position after lapping third time around at 127.477mph, 8.8s ahead of Harrison (127.692mph) with Johnson in fifth also above 126mph. 
 
Sweeney came through for sixth and the top ten was rounded out by Trummer, Yeardsley, Paul Williams (Lee Williams Motorsports Kawasaki) and Barry Furber (DC Auto Repairs Newtown Suzuki). Former race winner Rob Hodson (CK Racing Ducati) was another rider to retire on the final lap. 

Michael Dunlop and Joe Loughlin take victories in the Lightweight Class Classic TT Races

Michael Dunlop MBE made it two wins in a day as he won the 2026 Lightweight Classic TT race on Sunday afternoon, the Milenco by Padgetts Motorcycles Honda rider lapping at 119.081mph on the final lap to win by more than three minutes from Michael Sweeney (IMS/CSC Racing Yamaha) with Rhys Hardisty (GATC/Phil Anslow Yamaha) completing the podium in third.

It was Joe Loughlin (G2 Technical Services Ltd Kawasaki) who was victorious in the concurrently run Ultra-Lightweight race, his final lap of 113.524mph the quickest ever lap of the Mountain Course by a 400cc machine, finally bettering Jim Moodie’s mark of 112.40mph set in 1993. He reclaimed the lead from Owen Monaghan (DB Telecom/RLT Transport Kawasaki) on the final lap with Paul Cassidy (Green Racing/Island Fuels Yamaha) in third. 
 
Through Glen Helen on the opening lap, Dunlop led the Lightweight class by two seconds from Mike Browne (Laycock Racing Yamaha) with Sweeney ten seconds further back in third. Paul Jordan on the second Laycock Racing machine was only half a second behind Sweeney in fourth as Chris Moore (Outhwaite Plant/Silverstar/iHeat Yamaha) and Hardisty slotted into fifth and sixth respectively. 
 
By Ballaugh, Dunlop’s lead had crept out to 3.4s with Sweeney pulling three seconds clear of Jordan in third whilst Hardisty had overhauled Moore for fifth, but Browne was quicker on the run to Ramsey and cut Dunlop’s advantage to 3.3s. There was disappointment for Jordan though as he retired at Ballaugh Bridge. 
 
As they crossed the tramlines at the Bungalow for the first time, Browne had halved Dunlop’s advantage to 1.7s and although Dunlop had the quickest opening lap at 118.336mph, Browne’s lap of 118.284mph meant he cut the deficit to just half a second as they made their compulsory pit stop at the end of the lap. 

Sweeney (113.780mph) remained in third and he was now 12.6s ahead of Moore (112.585mph) with Hardisty (111.864mph) and Ryan Whitehall (110.562mph) completing the top six. Michael Grigson was in seventh ahead of Dan Sayle, but the latter retired in the pits. 
 
In the Ultra-Lightweight class, Loughlin’s opening lap of 110.094mph gave him a 9.3s lead over Cassidy (109.269mph) with Monaghan (109.113mph) only 1.7s further back in third as Harley Rushton (IMS/CSC Racing Yamaha), Radley Hughes (Kawasaki) and Charlie Hopkins (Kawasaki) completed the top six. Tom Snow was the leading 125cc runner in eighth. 
 
Dunlop’s pit stop was significantly quicker than Browne’s and that could be seen at Glen Helen on lap two, the difference between the two having shot out to 13.1s. There was also change further back as Moore moved ahead of Sweeney albeit by just 0.4s. 
 
It wasn’t just the Lightweights where was plenty of change either as Monaghan led Loughlin at Glen Helen second time around, the difference between the two 13s. With a larger tank fitted, Monaghan didn’t take on fuel at his pit stop and that enabled him to go clear. 

Onto Ballaugh and Dunlop added another 1.6s to his lead with Sweeney moving back into third whilst Loughlin took 1.6s out of Monaghan’s lead, the gap down to 11.3s at the midway point of the race. 
 
Dunlop led Browne by 16.6s at Ramsey second time around but more drama followed as the latter failed to make it to the Bungalow, the Irishman later reported as a retirement at the Mountain Mile. That meant Dunlop’s lead over new second placed rider Sweeney now stood at 1m49s. 
 
Dunlop flashed across the line with a second lap speed of 115.510mph and as he continued on his way on the final lap, his lead was two minutes over Sweeney. Moore, Hardisty, Whitehall and Grigson rounded out the top six whilst further back on the Mountain Course, Loughlin was continuing to eat into Monaghan’s lead, the gap between the two down to 8.8s as they rounded Ramsey Hairpin. And as they started their final lap, Monaghan’s lead was down to 3.2s. 
 
Dunlop’s lead over Sweeney stood at 2m16s at Glen Helen on the final lap but Hardisty was now in third as Moore went out at Union Mills and Loughlin moved back ahead of Monaghan in the battle for supremacy in the Ultra-Lightweight class, his previous deficit turning onto a 2.4s advantage. 

A final lap speed of 119.081mph ultimately saw Dunlop take his second Lightweight Classic TT win in a row, his final winning margin over Sweeney a commanding 3m03s with Hardisty completing the podium in third, the Welshman back on a Classic TT podium for the first time since 2015. Grigson, Will Loder, Jeffrey Vromant and Steve Bayley were the only other Lightweight riders to finish. 
 
Meanwhile, Loughlin won the Ultra-Lightweight race and did so in style with a stunning final lap of 113.524mph sending him 22.3s clear of Monaghan, who was also above 111mph, with Cassidy rounding out the podium in third. And with Rushton having to push in from Governor’s Dip, eventually finishing 14th, Steven Price, Tom Snow and Brandon Brinded completed the top six. Snow, who lapped at 103.032mph, was the first 125cc rider home.

Reports credit: Phil Wain – Isle of Man TT Races https://www.iomttraces.com/latest/