RIDERS START TO MAKE THEIR MARK DURING THIRD MANX GRAND PRIX PRACTICE AS SIMON FULTON POSTS FASTEST TIME OF THE WEEK The Classic, Post Classic, Ultra-Lightweight and Newcomer B Groups opened up Tuesday’s practice session at the Manx Grand Prix, sponsored by visitisleofman.com. Conditions were generally dry and favourable although heavy winds were reported across the mountain section. The session got underway, following a short delay, at 6.35pm after an ambulance had to attend to a domestic emergency, and Dave Moffitt and Dave Taylor set off first from Glencrutchery Road on their Ultra-Lightweight machines. Moffitt was first back to the grandstand and was clocked at 106.601 with Mike Minns closely behind him at 105.045 but while Michael Dunlop posted the quickest speed through the Sulby Speed trap, clocking 149.1mph, the early pacemaker back to the grandstand on time (109.680mph) was Mark Buckley in the Post Classic Class on his Suzuki XR69. Olie Linsdell followed closely on the ’68 Paton at 108.894mph in the Senior Classic class with Alan Oversby (103.498mph) on a ’72 MV and Olie’s father Steve (100.168mph) on a 1970 Enfield Seeley also over the ton. Olie then went out on his Yamaha FZ 746 and promptly posted the quickest time of the evening, and indeed the first 110+ lap of the 2010 Manx Grand Prix meeting, with a time of 110.035 in the Senior Post Classic class ahead of Buckley and Michael Dunlop (106.725). Roy Richardson topped the post classic Junior leader board with 109.136 with adopted Manxman Chris Palmer 107.165 and Ulsterman Brian Mateer 106.004 also posting quick times. Phil McGurk continued his impressive form with 108.174 for his opening lap in the Ultra-Lightweight on his 650cc Kawasaki with Rab Davie hot on his heels posting 107.023. McGurk extended his time to 109.475 on the second lap with Dave Moffitt (107.654), Dave Bell (107.481) and Andy Lawson (107.468) all closely behind. In the Newcomer B Group Jonny Heginbotham opened up with another 100mph plus lap, clocking 102.761 and he followed up with an impressive 105.037 on his second lap. The Senior, Junior, Lightweight and Newcomers A groups started their session shortly after 7.15pm and the riders in the Junior class quickly set the benchmark with Wayne Kirwan (115.264mph) posting the fastest time of the week, Simon Fulton (114.912mph) and Michael Sweeney (114.890) were also comfortably quicker than anyone else in the week to date. Fulton then extended the fastest time of the week to 117.110mph on his second lap with Sweeney (116.123) and Ivan Lintin (115.386) also exceeding Kirwan’s first lap, Lintin having earlier posted 112.196, the fastest Senior time of the night which was later exceeded by Andrew Brady (116.836) although Lintin came back with a second lap of 115.386. Lintin also posted the quickest Sulby Speed trap time of the evening (178mph) on his Suzuki GSXR 750. Manxman Dan Sayle led the Lightweight leaderboard on his first lap with an impressive 111.030, which he later extended to 112.409 from Roy Richardson (110.718) and Nigel Moore (108.122). In the Newcomer A Group, local rider Andy Fenton opened up with the fastest newcomer time of the week with a 110.834mph lap ahead of Northern Ireland’s Shaun Anderson (108.851) and another promising Manx newcomer Tim Venables (108.002) also recording his fastest time around the mountain course. Fenton then improved his time to 113.432 on his second lap shortly before the session was flagged at 8.10pm Osmo Partti was seen by a paramedic after an incident at Sarah’s Cottage but was reported to be OK as was Gary Fowler at the Waterworks. Wayne Martin was taken by Airmed to Nobles with leg injuries following an incident at Whitegates while Darryl McGeown was taken back to the paddock by Ambulance but reported as okay after an accident at Governors. Tomorrow’s practice, scheduled to start at 6.20pm, will see the Senior, Junior, Lightweight and Newcomers A start the session with the Classic, Post Classic, Ultra-Lightweight and Newcomers B due to go out at 7.15pm More, from a press release issued by Manx GP organizers: MICHAEL DUNLOP SHOWS HIS CLASS AS PERFECT CONDITIONS ON THE ISLE OF MAN SEE RIDERS POSTING FASTEST TIMES OF THE WEEK IN FOURTH MANX GRAND PRIX PRACTICE The fourth practice session for the 2010 Manx Grand Prix, sponsored by visitisleofman.com, started as scheduled at 6.20pm with the Senior, Junior, Lightweight and Newcomers A classes getting first use of the mountain circuit. Clerk of the Course Phi Taubman issued a sunlight warning to the paddock with excessive glare reported from Ballagarey to Ballacraine. First away were Andy Brady and Wayne Kirwan in the Junior class, leading the field out from the pit lane in front of the grandstand. Simon Fulton continued his good form from the previous night with a quick opening burst and he was fastest to the first checkpoint at Glen Helen with Michael Sweeney in hot pursuit in the Junior Class and Ivan Lintin on his Senior machine. Wayne Kirwan was first back to the Grandstand on the first lap with a lap of 116.1, a time that was quickly exceeded by Sweeney, Fulton and Lintin. Fulton clocked the quickest time of the week on his second lap at 117.793 with Michael Sweeney also inside the previous night’s fastest lap at 117.319. In the Newcomers A group Manx riders Tim Venables and Andy Fenton both opened with 110mph plus laps, with Venables recording his fastest of the week at 112.141 while Dan Sayle comfortably clocked the fastest first lap in the Lightweight’s with 114.603, just outside Richard ‘Milky’ Quayle’s MGP Lightweight lap record of 114.8 set in 1999. Fenton later recorded the fastest newcomer A time on his second lap with 113.192. The Classic, Post Classic, Ultra Lightweight and Newcomers B session began on time at 7.10 with Bob Owen on the ’69 Seeley in the Senior Classic and Maria Costello on one of the Suzuki XR 69’s in the Post Classic first away in the session. Olie Linsdell was again the man to watch in the Post Classic’s on the Yamaha FZ 746 with Michael Dunlop and Mark Buckley, both riding Suzuki XR 69’s, following closely behind. Linsdell was quickest at each of the five timing checkpoints around the course and clocked the fastest first lap, timed at 113.87 ahead of Michael Dunlop (112.022) and Mark Buckley (109.125). MGP Rider Liaison officer Johnny Barton, on an 85 Suzuki GSXR, was the fourth fastest in the first lap of the practice clocking 105.409. Linsdell (114.931) and Dunlop (114.584) both improved their times on the second lap while Johnny Barton also went quicker with 107.808. However Michael Dunlop stole their thunder by getting a third lap in on the Suzuki and posting a time of 115.097. Mark Buckley also improved his lap time with a third lap of 110.920. Chris Palmer, riding a 1962 AJS 7R 350cc, posted the fastest time in the Junior Classic with 97.776mph. Mark Parrett on a 1970 Honda K4 350, Alan Oversby (348cc MV) and Chris McGahan (Honda 346cc) were second, third and fourth respectively on the night. Ulsterman Brian Mateer on a Yamaha TZB 249 led the field in the Junior Post Classic Class with an opening time of 105.688 with Barry Davidson (Yamaha TZB 3YL) and Wattie Brown (Yamaha TZ 349) also clocking laps in excess of 100mph. Mateer (107.681) and Davidson both posted quicker times on their second laps while Chris Palmer swapped from his AJS to a 91 Yamaha TZV Twin 250cc and clocked 106.845, the second fastest on the night in the Junior Post Classic Class. In the Senior Classic (500cc) Alan Oversby riding a 72 MV posted 105.222 with Roy Richardson on a 1969 Aermacchi Ala D’Oro 476 and Mark Herbertson on a ’68 Matchless also posting 100mph laps. In the Ultra Lightweight Practice the first five riders back Rab Davie, David Bell, Dave Moffitt, Mike Minns and Andy Lawson – all posted 108mph laps which augurs well for a close race a week on Friday while in the Newcomers B Lee Darbyshire and Scott Campbell both posted 100mph laps. Peter Simpson came off his machine at the 11th Milestone but was reported as unhurt after being seen by a travelling marshal. Thursday’s practice is scheduled to start with the Senior, Junior, Lightweight and Newcomers A away first at 6.20pm and the Classic, Post Classic, Ultra Lightweight and Newcomers B at 7.05pm.