2024 Isle of Man TT
Friday Qualifying
Practice week on the Isle of Man has come to a close with a double Friday session after five stuttering days that saw a number of sessions either completely cancelled or curtailed early.
Last year we enjoyed glorious sunshine throughout the TT fortnight, however, for this 2024 edition the weather has so far returned to more ‘normal’ conditions. Damp patches and gusting winds have dictated that outright lap records have not quite been troubled. But that’s not to say that times have been slow…
The usual suspects, Peter Hickman, Michael Dunlop, and Dean Harrison, have consistently been circulating on the big bikes in and around the 132mph mark all week, but on Friday, speeds jumped considerably.
Peter Hickman leads the way going into race week with a lap of 134.638mph, which (like his 2023 outright lap record) he set on the FHO BMW Superstock. Behind him is Davey Todd. The Milwaukee BMW man banged in a lap of 133.942mph; a personal best for the Saltburn rider and a huge improvement on any speeds he had recorded prior to this year. What’s more impressive is that he did it from a standing start. Honda Racing’s Dean Harrison slipped into third with a 132.6mph effort, just tenths faster than Michael Dunlop. MD also recorded his fastest lap on a superstock.
Dean Harrison
“Honestly, I think it has been a tough week with bike setup and bike time, obviously, we had a mechanical and things have been a bit disrupted with the schedule changes and cancellations. I’ve done a 132.5 mph lap from a standing start, which isn’t too bad, but I definitely feel like there is more to come from myself and from the bike thats for sure. We’re struggling a little bit with stability, but Chris and I have a few ideas to throw at it in tomorrow’s final qualifying session. I definitely think that if we can improve that then there is plenty more to come. We are only going to get stronger, and I’m looking forward to getting going tomorrow with the first race.”
Australians Josh Brookes and David Johnson have both joined the 130mph club this evening. Brookes, on the FHO BMW, has been regularly clocking speeds over 200mph on the run through Sulby.
John McGuinness clocked the fifth fastest Superbike time and was eighth in Superstock.
John McGuinness
“It’s been a solid week of practice, to be fair. We’ve got plenty of laps in, and I think we’re not too far away. I get a bit frustrated with the wind, if I’m honest it makes me a little nervous as I don’t like sticking my neck out when it’s unpredictable like that. So to do the lap time we have done in those conditions is good. I’ve been in that situation many times before where there were disruptions and cancellations that didn’t really affect me. I have the experience, so if the race was tomorrow I’m ready to go. We’ve got a really nice balanced bike that is very competitive, I’m more or less on the pace of where we were running last year which means we’ve progressed and we are there or thereabouts. I’ll have a sit-down tomorrow after I’ve digested the week and how things have gone before making a few changes and going from there.”
Despite early fast laps from Jamie Coward and Dom Herbertson in Supertwins, Michael Dunlop put a late run together on his Paton that was just three-seconds shy of his own lap record. It was a show of strength from the Ballymoney man and a reminder to all just how well he goes on the little bike. In true Dunlop style, he was almost last on the road, with Just Rob Hodson behind him- the final solo men on track this week.
Davey Todd was fastest in Supersport on the Powertool Ducati. Todd and the TAS team are really venturing into the unknown with the V2, as no one has ever run one at the TT. Davey himself has declared himself ‘really happy’ with the little Italian bike and is content with how it turns, even if it is a little ‘nervous’.
The opening supersport race tomorrow will be the real acid test, though. Fans all over the island are focused on one question: Can Michael Dunlop equal his uncle Joey’s record of 26 wins around the mountain circuit?
Dunlop has surprisingly been switching between the Yamaha YZF-R6 (on which he’s won the past four supersport TTs) and a Triumph 765 throughout the practice week. Both bikes are qualified, and it’s anyone’s guess which bike he will wheel to the line tomorrow. However, I feel the smart money will be on the old faithful, the R6.
Sidecars will also be racing tomorrow, but as ever, the three-wheelers will be lamenting a lap of track time. This evening, they were the last session on the road, however it was quickly announced that those in the control tower were monitoring cloud cover on the mountain. In the end, they only got one lap with the local Manx Crowe brothers fastest on track ahead of Founds and Walmsley and Founds and Gibbons.
Hot favourites Ben Birchall and Kevin Rousseau were fast this morning on the opening run to Ramsey. Unfortunately, they crashed out at the Mountain Box. While they are reported as being unhurt, it’s unclear at the time of going to press whether they will be good to go tomorrow. Their outfit was only recovered this evening, and it will be a race against time to make repairs.
While it’s the end of ‘practice week’ proper, there will be single-lap sessions carried out throughout the week, the first of which will take place tomorrow morning. That’s followed by a parade lap to celebrate 40 years of Arai helmets, and then it’s show time.
While there is always a tense cloak of nervousness that closes in over the Island on the eve of the opening race, tonight it’s more pronounced than ever… For this time, the hand of history is upon us. While some fans excitedly chatter in the pubs and discuss whether Michael can get the job done, there are others who dare not even think about what lies ahead.
Since World War II, there have only been three men who can claim to be the best ever around the TT. They have been Stanley Woods, Mike Hailwood and Joey Dunlop. Tomorrow, Michael might just join that club alongside his legendary uncle. Check back here to find out if he gets the job done.
Superbike Q5 Results
- Peter Hickman – BMW M1000RR K66 – 132.863
- Dean Harrison – Honda CBR1000RR SP SC77 – 132.596
- Michael Dunlop – Honda T-Bike CBR1000RR-R SC82 – 132.399
- Joshua Brookes – BMW M1000RR K66 – 131.071
- John McGuinness – Honda CBR1000RR SP SC77 – 130.745
- David Johnson – Kawasaki ZX-10RR SE ZXT02HÂ – 130.283
- Jamie Coward – Honda CBR1000RR SP SC77Â – 130.024
- Dominic Herbertson – BMW M1000RR K66Â – 128.936
- Shaun Anderson – Suzuki GSX-R1000R L9Â – 128.914
- Michael Rutter – BMW M1000RR K66Â – 128.636
Superstock Q5 Results
- Peter Hickman – BMW M1000RR K66 – 134.638
- Davey Todd – BMW M1000RR K66 – 132.976
- Michael Dunlop – Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade SC82 – 132.674
- James Hillier – Honda CBR1000RR SP SC77 – 130.048
- Jamie Coward – Honda CBR1000RR SP SC77 – 130.024
- Joshua Brookes – BMW M1000RR K66 – 129.965
- Dean Harrison – Honda CBR1000RR SP SC77 – 129.483
- John McGuinness – Honda CBR1000RR SP SC77 – 128.908
- David Johnson – Kawasaki ZX-10RR SE ZXT02H – 128.261
- Nathan Harrison – Honda CBR1000RR SP SC77 – 128.209
Supersport Q5 Results
- Davey Todd – Ducati Panigale V-Twin 955 1H 127.062
- James Hind – Suzuki GSX-R750 125.833
- Michael Evans – Triumph Street Triple 765RS 125.358
- Dean Harrison – Honda CBR600RR 124.940
- Peter Hickman – Triumph Street Triple 765 Moto2 Edition – 124.554
- Mike Browne – Yamaha YZF-R6 – 123.420
- Rob Hodson Yamaha YZF-R6 – 122.347
- Shaun Anderson Suzuki GSX-R750 – 122.269
- Ian Hutchinson Honda CBR600RR – 122.263
- Michael Sweeney Yamaha YZF-R6 – 122.225
- Dominic Herbertson Yamaha YZF-R6 – 121.956
- Joshua Brookes Yamaha YZF-R6 – 121.750
- Ryan Cringle Yamaha YZF-R6 – 119.487
- Pierre Yves Bian Triumph Street Triple 765RS – 119.436
- Darryl Tweed Yamaha YZF-R6 – 118.521
SuperTwin Q5 Results
- Michael Dunlop – Paton S1-R – 121.882
- Jamie Coward – Kawasaki Z650 – 120.378
- Peter Hickman – Yamaha R7 – 119.271
- Davey Todd – Kawasaki Ninja 650 – 118.656
- Rob Hodson – Paton S1-R – 118.454
- Mike Browne – Aprilia RS 660 – 117.963
- Adam McLean – Yamaha R7 – 117.396
- Paul Jordan – Yamaha R7 – 117.012
- Michael Rutter – Yamaha R7 – 116.876
- Joshua Brookes – Yamaha R7 – 116.413
Sidecar Q5 Results
- Ryan Crowe / Callum Crowe Honda LCR – 115.682
- Peter Founds / Jevan Walmsley Honda DDM – 115.046
- Alan Founds / Rhys Gibbons Yamaha LCR – 114.605
- Daryl Gibson / Tom Christie Suzuki CES – 112.310
- Todd Ellis / Emmanuelle Clement Yamaha CES – 111.183
- Tim Reeves / Mark Wilkes Honda LCR – 110.548
- John Holden / Frank Claeys Suzuki – 110.267
- Steve Ramsden / Mathew Ramsden Honda LCR – 110.153
- Wayne Lockey / Matthew Rostron Honda LCR – 1108.283
- Michael Russell / Vicky Cooke Suzuki LCR – 108.065
2024 IOMTT Schedule
| Race Week | |
| Race Day 1 Saturday 1 June | |
| 1030 | Superbike/Superstock Qualifying (2 laps) |
| 1330 | Monster Energy Supersport TT Race 1 (4 laps) |
| 1600 | Sidecar TT Race 1 (3 laps) |
| Race Day 2 Sunday 2 June | |
| 1230 | Roads Close |
| 1330 | Solo Warm Up (1 lap) |
| 1440 | RST Superbike TT Race (6 laps) |
| Rest Day Monday 3 June | |
| Race Day 3 Tuesday 4 June | |
| 1000 | Roads Close |
| 1030 | Solo Warm Up (1 lap) |
| 1050 | Sidecar Shakedown (1 lap) |
| 1145 | RL360 Superstock TT Race 1 (3 laps) |
| 1400 | Metzeler Supertwin TTÂ Race 1 (3 laps) |
| Race Day 4 Wednesday 5 June | |
| 1000 | Roads Close |
| 1030 | Solo Warm Up (1 lap) |
| 1145 | Sidecar TT Race 2 (3 laps) |
| 1400 | Monster Energy Supersport TT Race 2 (4 laps) |
| Rest Day Thursday 6 June | |
| Race Day 5 Friday 7 June (Isle of Man Bank Holiday) | |
| 1000 | Roads Close |
| 1030 | Solo Warm Up (1 lap) |
| 1145 | PE Superstock TT Race 2 (3 laps) |
| 1400 | Entire Cover insurance Supertwin TT Race 2 (3 laps) |
| Race Day 6 Saturday 8 June | |
| 1000 | Roads Close |
| 1030 | Solo Warm Up (1 lap) |
| 1145 | Milwaukee Senior TT Race (6 laps) |
