HARRISON WINS DRAMATIC DUNLOP SENIOR TT RACE 7.6.19
Friday 7 June 2019
Dean Harrison won a dramatic Dunlop Senior TT race on Friday morning, the final race of the 2019 Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy, with the Silicone Engineering Kawasaki rider taking the lead after long time leader Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) ran into trouble on the fifth lap.
Hickman had opened up a near 18-second lead at two-thirds race distance but he slowed when the bike overheated on the penultimate lap of the Mountain Course which allowed Harrison to sweep through for his third TT victory. Hickman held on for second – 53.062s behind – with Conor Cummins (Milenco by Padgetts Honda) taking third.
With good conditions all around the course, Hickman led from Harrison at Glen Helen first time around but – as expected – it was close with the gap just 0.351s. The duo had already opened up a near six-second advantage over third placed Cummins. Michael Dunlop, Michael Rutter and David Johnson were lying in fourth, fifth and sixth respectively but James Hillier clearly had an issue during the first sector and was down in 21st place.
Harrison nudged ahead at Ballaugh by two tenths of a second but by Ramsey Hickman was back in front albeit by just a tenth of a second. Cummins was now over 11 seconds in arrears and while Dunlop remained in fourth, he was only 0.024s behind the Manxman. Johnson had now overhauled Rutter for fifth with the latter coming under pressure from Davey Todd.
An opening lap of 134.284mph – which proved to be the fastest lap of the race and the meeting – gave Hickman a 2.2s lead over Harrison with Cummins still in third but now over 14s adrift. He only led Dunlop by 0.824s as Johnson maintained fifth but Todd had now moved up to sixth with his first ever 130mph+ lap. Twenty three time TT Race winner John McGuinness retired at the Bungalow while Hillier had clawed his way back up to 11th.
Harrison reduced his deficit to Hickman by four tenths at Glen Helen on the second lap with Cummins pulling away from Dunlop – the gap between the two now more than three seconds. Johnson was ten seconds behind the 19-time TT Race winner in fifth but six seconds clear of sixth placed Todd.
At Ramsey, Hickman had extended his lead to 3.4s and aided by another superb run over the Mountain, a second lap of 134.28mph, which was, amazingly, only 0.022s slower than his first lap, saw the gap stretch to 8.067s. Cummins continued in third although Dunlop closed the gap slightly but Johnson retired at Bedstead which allowed Todd and Rutter to move up to fifth and sixth respectively. It was double disappointment for Honda as Ian Hutchinson retired at the pits.
After the first round of pit stops, Hickman’s lead had grown to ten seconds by the time he got to Glen Helen on the third lap and Cummins had also pulled away from Dunlop in the battle for the final podium spot, the difference now almost 11 seconds. Rutter had closed in on Todd though and they were split by only 1.4s.
By the end of the third lap – half race distance – Hickman had added more time to his advantage and the Burton upon Trent rider’s lead had increased to a formidable looking 13.48s. Cummins was looking safe in third as he now had a healthy gap of almost 16 seconds over Dunlop but although Rutter had got to within a second of Todd at Ramsey, the youngster enjoyed a seven-second gap over his more experienced rival as they headed out onto lap four. Hillier was now running in seventh.
Coming into the second pit stop, Hickman’s lead over Harrison had increased again, up now to 17.6s, after lapping at 133.55mph as Cummins got more and more secure in third. Todd remained in fifth but Hillier was continuing to work his way back up the leaderboard and a near 131mph lap saw him close to within 3.1s of Todd.
The pit stops saw a significant change at the top of the timings though and by Glen Helen on the fifth lap, Harrison had brought the lead down to 7.9s as Hickman went through the first sector over nine seconds slower than his Kawasaki rival. The drama continued and at Ballaugh, Harrison had brought the gap down to just 1.1s with Hickman going through the subsequent Sulby speed trap at just 159mph, 30mph slower than Harrison!
Going through Ramsey for the penultimate time, there was a new race leader as Harrison took the lead for the first time and he now led by almost eight seconds. Hickman was losing seven to eight seconds to Harrison through every sector but although he was now over 18s behind, he continued on to his sixth and final lap.
Harrison pressed on and with an untroubled final lap, he duly took his third TT win by 53.062s but with Hickman’s pace slowing, all eyes fell on whether or not he could hold onto second place. He did it – just – as he held off Cummins by 5.8s.
Dunlop had a comfortable fourth place and it was Hillier who got the verdict over Todd for fifth, the latter setting a personal best lap of 131.49mph on the sixth lap in just his second year at the TT. Michael Rutter, Jamie Coward – who recorded his first 130mph lap – Brian McCormack and Dominic Herbertson completed the top ten.
The race results enabled Hickman to regain the Joey Dunlop TT Championship he last won in 2017 with 111 points, 13 ahead of Harrison (98) with Hillier in third (69). Hickman will receive a Bremont watch from the TT’s Official Timing Partner.
After twice previously finishing second, Coward won the TT Privateer’s Championship with the maximum 125 points after being the top privateer in all five of the races. McCormack (61) finished second with Paul Jordan (58) in third.
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki UK:
Historic Senior TT win for Dean Harrison and Silicone Engineering Racing Kawasaki results in 2019 TT Manufacturer’s Award
Historic Senior TT win for Dean Harrison and Silicone Engineering Racing Kawasaki results in 2019 TT Manufacturer’s Award
After a long week of frustrating weather conditions and limited track time, Dean Harrison made the most of each outing to finish both the Supersport and Superstock races on the podium and then performed flawlessly to snatch the elusive “big bike” victory. Additionally, his efforts garnered enough points to also secure Kawasaki the coveted Manufacturer’s Award.
The 6 lap Senior TT is regarded as one of the most testing motorcycling time trial races in the world for both rider and machine. Harrison’s Silicone Engineering Racing Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR didn’t hesitate throughout the entire race.
Two pit stops take place in the race, presenting a difficult task for the crew who delivered the tyre changes and refuelling in expert form.
“I can’t believe it, I’m over the moon. Every TT race that I’ve won has been on a Kawasaki. Ninja 650, ZX-6R and ZX-10RR, I now have a win on all of them and it ticks all the boxes,” commented the ecstatic Harrison, who now has three Isle of Man TT winner’s trophies in his cabinet.
“Once I saw a board showing a big lead I was short shifting, it’s just what you do naturally, but also a testament to the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR. The hammering it gets around here is incredible!” commented the Yorkshireman.
“The TT is brilliant now, every class is so competitive, we have a new bike in 2019 with the Ninja ZX-10RR and it’s only going to get better and better. We had 6 laps with no glitches, the Senior race is regarded as the blue ribbon event so it’s mega to win it.”
Harrison has been readying himself tirelessly this year in the lead up to the Isle of Man TT, including competing in many British Superbike Championship rounds in addition to the roads and a heavy testing programme.
“If you take a step back and relax you don’t tend to make mistakes and the bike was faultless. Massive thanks to the Silicone Engineering Racing Kawasaki team. It’s nice to get that win, Kawasaki’s first since 1975.”
Senior Racing and Marketing Coordinator, Ross Burridge shared Harrison’s excitement, saying, “I am absolutely thrilled for Dean and the whole team! We have been working closely with the team this year knowing that they have the capability to be right at the front. They have repaid our faith in them ten times over, giving us our first Senior TT win since 1975! The ZX-10RR is a fantastic motorcycle and the team have turned it into an unbelievable race bike. Thanks to the whole team from everyone at Kawasaki! May there be many more TT wins!”
Branch Manager of Kawasaki Motors UK, Howard Dale, added. “Dean’s stunning Senior win, along with Kawasaki podiums in the Lightweight, Superstock, Superbike and Supersport races created an unbeatable points lead enabling Kawasaki to claim the Manufacturer’s Championship for the third time in four years. Our congratulations go to Dean and all other Kawasaki competitors that made this achievement possible while entertaining the huge crowds at this year’s TT festival.”
For Harrison, after the dust has settled on his unforgettable accomplishment, rider and team will be looking ahead to the next and final International Road Race event of the year, the Ulster Grand Prix which takes place in August.
More, from a press release issued by Honda:
Podium highlight of bittersweet TT for Honda Racing
Isle of Man TT
Snaefell Mountain Course, Isle of Man
After the success of David Johnson’s maiden TT podium yesterday, today’s blue riband event of the Senior TT was ultimately a frustrating affair for Honda Racing.
Under increasingly brooding albeit rain-free skies, the six-lap Senior got underway at 1015h local time, and Davo soon settled himself into a strong 6th position. By Ballaugh Bridge on the opening lap, the popular Aussie was up to 5th on the #9 CBR1000RR Fireblade as he set about fighting through the field, much like he did yesterday to reach the podium.
After an impressive opening lap of 130.98mph, disappointment struck at the end of lap two when a vibration caused the crank position sensor to fail, shutting down the bike and forcing to Davo to retire.
He leaves the TT with his head held high though having tasted the champagne with his Superstock podium.
Having elected to sit out the Superstock race yesterday to focus on the Senior whilst recovering from his crash last week, Hutchy battled on in last night’s qualifying and to start the Senior. Not feeling fully fit he gave the race his best shot, but after two laps he entered the pits and retired.
On the Milenco by Padgett’s Motorcycles Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade Conor Cummins took third, and aboard the Bathams Racing Honda RC213V-S, Michael Rutter came home 7th.
David Johnson 9
It was a shame for the problem in the race today, as we were settling in nicely and I think on for a decent little result again. I was feeling good and the bike was good, and looking at the splits that second lap was going to be into 133mph but it just wasn’t to be. With the Senior today though I couldn’t really celebrate the podium last night, so I’m looking forward to being able to do that tonight! Thanks to the team for their hard work out here and of course again for the podium yesterday, which was the absolute highlight, and good job to the organisers for getting all the running done in just a day and a half and giving everyone some great racing.
Ian Hutchinson 4
It was a hard day, and it’s been a hard week. You have to be on top form to ride here and I wasn’t after the crash last week. I tried, but after two laps it was clear we couldn’t do it so I had to retire. It’s been a hard TT and it’s not what we came here to achieve, but that’s just sometimes how it is at the TT.
Jonny Twelvetrees
Team Manager
It’s been a challenging TT this year, for everyone involved. Of course we had the high of Davo’s podium yesterday, but then today was disappointing. Just as Davo was lining himself up in a strong position to keep chipping away towards the podium like he did yesterday, a vibration broke his crank position sensor, which is the first time we’ve had this happen, and stopped the bike. Hutchy dug deep to ride in the Senior today after the injury he picked up in his crash last week, but unfortunately after two laps just couldn’t continue. But to have been running a strong top-five in the Senior, plus the Superstock podium, are the definite positives we can take from the weekend.
More, from a press release issued by Smiths Racing BMW:
Second Place In Senior TT For Unlucky Hickman
Peter Hickman and the Smiths Racing BMW team came agonisingly close to winning the Dunlop Peter HickmanSenior TT race for the second successive year earlier today when a technical issue forced the Lincolnshire rider to reduce his pace on the penultimate lap when well in command.
Having opened up an 18-second lead on the Smiths BMW S1000RR in the six-lap race, Hickman looked on course for his fourth win of the week but following a problem with the cooling system on the Gloucester-based team’s machine, he had to roll off the power meaning he had to settle for second place.
Brought forward to 10am, conditions were near perfect as Peter signalled his intentions from the word go. His opening lap of 134.284mph was the fastest of the week, giving him a two second lead over regular sparring partner Dean Harrison.
Second time around the 37.73-mile Mountain Course, the Waddington-based rider lapped at an almost identical speed as the first lap to give him an eight second lead with four laps to go. Pressing on at the head of the field, Peter was able to extend his lead through each timing point and as he came into the second pit stop at the end of the fourth lap, his advantage over Harrison had gone out to over 17 seconds. However, as he left the pits and headed down the 170mph Bray Hill section of the circuit, the bike began to lose water and as he got to Glen Helen his lead had been reduced by ten seconds.
From that moment on, it was clear any chance of victory had gone and at one stage, it didn’t look as if Hickman would finish the race, such was the amount of time he was losing. However, he kept plugging away and although he had to lap considerably slower than what he had done at the beginning of the race, he still finished in an excellent second place.
It was his fifth podium of the week, from as many races, and ensured he regained the Joey Dunlop TT Championship he last won in 2017 and the Smiths Racing Team took the team award for the third year in a row.
Peter Hickman: “The bike ran brilliantly for four laps and I’d opened up a healthy 18 second lead but after the second pit stop, the temperature of the bike just shot up and when I went down Bray Hill, the bike started to chuck water out at me. It’s the same issue we’ve had all fortnight and it just makes no sense at all. The team have turned the bike upside down and replaced everything, but we still can’t work it out! After that, I had to ride at half throttle for the final two laps and not rev the bike more than 11,000rpm so it wasn’t easy. It is what it is, and Dean had an issue in the Superbike race, so it was my turn today but although I’m disappointed not to have won today, I’ve had a mega week and with three wins and two more podiums, I can’t complain. It was especially great to get a Supersport win for the first time and the team have been awesome all fortnight so I can’t thank them enough.”
Darren Jones, Team Co-ordinator: “We’re gutted! After two 134mph laps, Pete was well placed to take Peter Hickmanhis fourth win of the week, but it wasn’t to be although it’s testament to both him and the bike that he could still finish in second place after encountering problems on the final two laps. We’d tried different engines, radiators and all sorts on the big bike but still couldn’t get to the bottom of the issue but our hand was forced today. We planned on using the ‘hybrid’ bike we’d used to win the Superbike race earlier in the week, but the bike was stripped after the Superstock race and we didn’t have enough bits to build it back up again. We’ve only had the bike a few weeks so to come and do what we’ve done is phenomenal and we’re only going to get stronger, so it bodes well for 2020. We’ve been competitive at BSB and won at the North West 200 so to come here and get three wins, a second and a third is pretty good going. I’ve got to say a massive thanks to the team as it’s been a challenging fortnight, but they’ve kept chipping away and worked tirelessly so to come away with the Team Prize is the least they deserve.”
The team now return to the Bennetts British Superbike Championship with Hickman and James Ellison contesting round four at Brands Hatch on June 14-16.
Dunlop Senior TT (6 laps)
1 Dean Harrison (Kawasaki)
2 Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW)
3 Conor Cummins (Honda)
4 Michael Dunlop (BMW)
5 James Hillier (Kawasaki)
6 Davey Todd (BMW)
More, from a press release issued by Metzeler:
Metzeler Wins the 2019 Dunlop Senior TT with Dean Harrison
Historic Victory for the Tire Brand and for the British Rider from Bradford who, Riding the Racetec™ RR Slick Fitted Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR of the Silicone Engineering Kawasaki Racing Team, Crossed the Finish Line in First Position with an Impressive 53 Second Advantage over the Next Pursuer
The Metzeler Brand also Achieved Victory in the Lightweight TT with Michael Dunlop, Securing a Total of Eight Podiums Thanks to James Hillier and Jamie Coward’s Performances, in Addition to Those of Dean Harrison
DOUGLAS, Isle of Man (June 7, 2019) – The METZELER brand and Dean Harrison have today won the Dunlop Senior TT, the most prestigious race of the Isle of Man TT, a historic and fascinating motorcycle competition which has been held since 1907 on the 60.720-kilometre (37.733 miles) road circuit of the Snaefell Mountain Course.
Victory in the Dunlop Senior TT is the perfect crowning moment of a week in which the METZELER brand flew high winning the Lightweight TT with Michael Dunlop and climbing the podium a total of eight times thanks to performances by James Hillier and Jamie Coward, in addition to those of Harrison and Dunlop.
The success at the Dunlop Senior TT represents an historic victory for both METZELER and the rider from Bradford who, after seven years of collaboration full of successes and victories in all the other classes of the Isle of Man TT, a first time win in the Dunlop Senior TT. Furthermore, at 30, Dean Harrison is one of the youngest riders ever to win this race.
After getting three second places in the Superbike and Supersport races on Monday June 3 and in the Superstock race on Thursday, June 6, today, Dean Harrison, on the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR of the Silicone Engineering Racing Kawasaki team fitted with METZELER RACETEC™ RR Slick tires, has achieved a fantastic victory. He crossed the finish line, with an advantage of over 53 seconds over Peter Hickman, second, and Conor Cummins, third.
To complete the podiums obtained by METZELER were James Hillier, third in the second Supersport race, and Jamie Coward, who gave the tire brand a splendid double in the Lightweight TT classifying second behind Michael Dunlop, thanks also to the performance of the RACETEC™ RR treaded tires.
The success in the Dunlop Senior TT and the excellent results obtained also in the other classes of the Isle of Man TT, as well as in the many road racing competitions such as the North West 200 and the Ulster Grand Prix, demonstrate the high technological and performance standards reached by METZELER in the development of its range of slick and treaded racing tires. These products are tested in the toughest and most demanding road racing conditions and races, such as the Isle of Man TT, and are made available to all riders through their dealer network.
More, from a press release issued by BMW Motorrad Motorsport:
Two wins and a podium for Peter Hickman on the new BMW S 1000 RR at the Isle of Man TT.
Peter Hickman wins the Superbike TT and Superstock TT on the Isle of Man.
Second place in the Senior TT on Friday.
Michael Dunlop on the new RR also involved in the battle for the podium.
Isle of Man. The new BMW S 1000 RR made its debut at the Isle of Man TT – with a strong result. Peter Hickman (GBR) of Smiths Racing Team set the pace in the 1000 cc races on his new RR and picked up two wins (Superbike TT, Superstock TT) and a second place on the podium (Senior TT). ‘Hicky’ also set the fastest lap in all three races.
After fog and rain caused massive delays to the Isle of Man TT schedule, the Superbike TT on Monday was the first 1000 cc event scheduled. Hickman won the race and set the fastest lap. The Superbike TT was overshadowed by the fatal accident of BMW road racer Daley Mathison (GBR) of Team Penz13.com.
The second race in the 1000 cc category in the Superstock TT followed on Thursday. Hickman dominated the race on his BMW S 1000 RR right from the start. After three laps on the ‘Mountain Course’, he crossed the finish line as the winner, with a lead of 26 seconds over his closest rival.
Race week drew to a close on Friday with the Senior TT over six laps. Hickman stormed away from the field on his RR and extended his lead to almost 18 seconds. However, an overheating issue forced him to reduce his speed – but Hickman had no intention of quitting the race, and ended up on the podium in second place.
Michael Dunlop (GBR), who once again joined forces with the Tyco BMW team at the Isle of Man TT, was also involved in the battle for the podium on his RR. In the Superbike TT on Monday, Dunlop was ranked in sixth place. In the Superstock TT he finished in fourth place and missed out on the podium by just two-tenths of a second. In the Senior TT, Dunlop crossed the finish line in fourth place once again.
Davey Todd (GBR) of Penz13.com was ranked tenth in the Superbike TT, and he finished in eighth place in the Superstock race. In the Senior TT on Friday, Todd got his personal best lap time on the ‘Mountain Course’ to date and crossed the finish line in sixth place. Michael Rutter (GBR / Bathams Racing) rode his RR sixth position in Thursday’s Superstock TT.
Kawasaki won the Manufacturer’s Award with Smiths Racing taking the Team Prize for the third year in a row.