Experienced Kiwi campaigner Bruce Anstey won his 8th Isle of Man TT race on Monday afternoon when he clinched victory in a shortened, and dramatic, 3-lap Monster Energy Supersport Race 1. The original race was red flagged following an incident at Gorse Lea. The Padgetts Honda rider took the win by 8.39s when race leader Cameron Donald retired his Wilson Craig Honda at Kirk Michael on the final lap and the Kiwi was able to come home ahead of Keith Amor, who notched up his best ever TT result, and Guy Martin, the Relentless by TAS Suzuki man having been able to make the race after an earlier spill at Creg ny Baa. With conditions perfect all around the Mountain Course, the race was re-started at 1.00pm with pit stops likely to be crucial and it was Donald who led by just 0.1s from Michael Dunlop with Anstey a further second back and Gary Johnson only a further tenth in arrears. Riders were jockeying for position close behind as well with John McGuinness, Amor, Dan Kneen and Martin occupying positions 5th to 8th and separated by just 3 seconds. By Ramsey, Dunlop was very much the man on the move and he’d turned his deficit into a 1.5s lead over Donald with Johnson now having overhauled Anstey. The gaps were beginning to increase with Amor now three seconds behind Anstey and ahead of McGuinness, Martin and Kneen. At the end of the first lap, it was Dunlop who was surging clear, his opening speed of 125.852mph sending him almost six seconds clear of Donald with Johnson now only 1.7s behind the Australian. Anstey, Martin and Amor that rounded out the top six but, with the exception of Dunlop, Johnson, Ian Lougher and Conor Cummins, most of the front runners pitted for fuel so the race entered a confused state as positions changed and large gaps appeared. By the time they got to Glen Helen, Johnson was the leader by some 37 seconds with Dunlop having gone out at Ballig Bridge. Lougher was holding onto second from Donald and Cummins with Anstey, Martin, Amor and McGuinness in hot pursuit. Johsnon’s lead was still 37s at Ramsey but it was now Donald in second followed by Anstey, Martin and Amor, the gap between the last two just 0.8s. Amor and McGuinness were circulating at the head of the field but it would all change after the pit stops. Johnson’s lead was down to 30s as he pitted for fuel and it didn’t look like it would be enough for him to retain the lead and that’s how it turned out. Through Glen Helen and Donald was back in front but it was still tight, his lead over Anstey just 4s. Amor was gaining time through all the sectors, now having moved up to third on time, some three seconds clear of Martin whilst Johnson’s strategy had clearly backfired as he slipped back to fifth place. There was drama ahead though when Donald failed to reach Ballaugh, his bike having expired at Kirk Michael, the same fate befalling Cummins who stopped on the approach to the same village. That meant that Anstey now held sway at the front and with the fastest lap of the race 126.595mph he held on for another TT victory to firmly make up for the disappointment of Saturday when he retired from the Dainese Superbike race. Amor was secure in second, almost eight seconds to the good from Martin but he only just held onto the final podium spot from fellow Lincolnshire man Johnson, the eventual margin just 1.18s. McGuinness had a solid ride into fifth with Dan Kneen back on form in 6th whilst Ian Lougher, Ben Wylie, Ian Mackman and Dan Stewart rounded out the top ten. Meanwhile, fine rides came from newcomers Robert Wilson, Dean Harrison and Dan Hegarty, the trio finishing in 23rd, 25th and 26th respectively. McGuinness continues to lead the TT Championship with 36 points, 3 ahead of Amor whilst Wylie was the first Privateer to finish although Mackman’s second place means he has 45 points, 16 ahead of Mark Buckley. More, from another press release issued by Isle of Man TT Press Office: MICHAEL DUNLOP MAKES UP FOR EARLIER DISAPPOINTMENT WITH ROYAL LONDON 360 SUPERSTOCK WIN Michael Dunlop made up for the disappointment of retiring from the morning’s Monster Energy Supersport Race 1 by winning Monday evening’s delayed 4-lap Royal London 360 Superstock race. Dunlop overhauled lap one leader Guy Martin and promptly romped away, putting in a second lap some 13 seconds quicker than his nearest rival giving him the cushion that allowed him to control the race after the pit stop. His eventual winning margin, the 9th TT win for Kawasaki, was 18.63s over John McGuinness, the Padgetts Honda rider overhauling Martin on the third lap. However, the Relentless by TAS Suzuki rider had the consolation of his second podium of the day. The daytime sun gave way to cooler, cloudier conditions for the 6.30pm start and it was McGuinness who put in his trademark rapid nine miles and he led Martin. It was close though with just 0.2s between them whilst William Dunlop was only another half second back in third. Indeed, there was only 1s between the top 4 and 2.4s between the top 7, Gary Johnson, Bruce Anstey and Keith Amor all right on the pace. At Ramsey, Michael Dunlop was in the lead from Martin and McGuinness but it had all changed by the Grandstand and it was now the Suzuki man in the lead, his opening lap of 127.953mph giving him a buffer of just under two seconds. McGuinness was still in contention, only another 1.7s in arrears with Johnson, William Dunlop and Amor completing the top six. Leading contenders Dan Stewart was out of luck though, the Cumbrian retiring his BMW at the end of the first lap. The front three were edging away from the rest of the field with Martin circulating on the road with Amor but it was Dunlop who was surging clear at the front, his advantage over Martin 3.5s which, amazingly, he extended to almost ten seconds by Ramsey. McGuinness was still only two seconds off Martin but at the end of the lap, Dunlop’s lap of 129.709mph was way quicker than anyone else and his lead rocketed up to 13 seconds. Johnson was out though having retired at Cregny Baa whilst William Dunlop and Dan Kneen were treating the fans all around the course to a terrific spectacle as they lapped wheel to wheel. The pit stops all went smoothly for the front runners and by Glen Helen, Dunlop’s lead was over 15 seconds and, with another 4 added to that gap by Ramsey, it was his race to lose. Behind though, McGuinness was making a move and he was now ahead of Martin by almost two seconds, the latter still circulating and swapping positions with Amor. The battle for fifth was also hotting up with little to separate Wilson Craig Honda team-mates William Dunlop and Cameron Donald. Dunlop maintained his advantage over McGuinness all the way to the chequered flag for his second TT win whilst the Morecambe man was delighted to have racked up yet another TT win. Martin, meanwhile, was again left to rue what might have been and had to settle for third, his 11th TT podium. Amor enjoyed his second top four finish of the day in fourth whilst William Dunlop just got the verdict from Donald by 0.48s. Kneen, Michael Rutter, Adrian Archibald and James Hillier rounded out the top ten whilst newcomer Simon Andrews put in a brilliant ride to take 11th, also lapping well over 123mph and being the first privateer home. Conor Cummins got his much deserved first finish of the week in 12th with newcomers Dean Harrison and PiotrBetlej also putting in their first 120mph+ laps in 27th and 29th. McGuinness has opened up a 10-point lead over Amor in the TT Championship while Ian Mackman, 15th in the race, continues to extend his lead in the Privateers Championship. To listen live to Radio TT’s commentary for all races and follow live timing at the 2011 Isle of Man TT Races go to www.iomtt.com More, from a press release issued by Keith Amor’s publicist: Great day on the Island for Amor Falkirk’s Keith Amor enjoyed a great day on Monday at the Isle of Man TT Races with the KBMG Racing Honda rider finishing 2nd and 4th in the Supersport and Superstock races. The results maintained his record of finishing in the top four of all the races held so far and mean he’s now up to second in the TT Championship, 10 points behind current leader John McGuinness. The Supersport race had two starts after the first was stopped due to an incident and in the shortened 3-lap re-run, Keith found himself in 6th at the end of the opening lap, 16 seconds down on the pace setting Michael Dunlop. He opted to refuel like a number of the other top contenders whilst Dunlop didn’t but he soon retired and the race was wide open, Keith moving up to 4th at the end of lap 2. Circulating on the road with fellow Honda rider John McGuinness, a final lap of 126.159mph saw Keith rewarded with 2nd place, his best result to date around the Mountain Course, only eight seconds behind race winner Bruce Anstey. At 6.30pm, it was the turn of the 4-lap Superstock race although Keith was expecting this to be a harder race for him with the 1000cc bike more difficult to manage than the more nimble 600cc Supersport machine. Nevertheless, he was in the top six throughout and, with a best lap of 128.765mph, the second fastest of the race, he took a well deserved fourth place at the chequered flag for another great result. Speaking at the end of the day, a happy Keith said: “If you’d have given me 2nd and 4th at the beginning of today, I’d have snapped your hand off so it’s been a good day. I struggled a bit on the last lap of the 600cc race with my shoulder and I could have done without the extra lap today but up until then everything went well and dicing with John on the roads was a lot of fun, I think we passed each other 4 or 5 times on the final lap. I was too aggressive on the first lap though and used a bit too much of my tyre but, at the end of the day, a few days ago I was in hospital and now I’m on the podium so I can’t complain. The doctors and physios have done a great job so full credit to them. Second’s my best result so I’m getting there but I seem to be going down the Guy Martin route, racking up the podiums but not a win. We need to get rid of old man Anstey but full credit to him, he rode a great race so we’ll just have to give it another go in Wednesday’s 2nd 600cc race.” “In the Superstock race, the clutch was slipping for half of the first lap, particularly when I was on the side of the tyre, so I think I might have given it too much off the line but it got a bit better and I managed to adjust it coming out of the Gooseneck. It was a lot better after that but by then Guy had caught me and I heard him coming so I let him past and tucked in behind him as I didn’t think I was going to last the lap. My shoulder was playing up a bit and the clutch still wasn’t 100% but Guy coming by was a blessing as it towed me round for a couple of laps. Towards the end of the race I started to feel stronger but he was really hard on the brakes so it was difficult to get by whilst he also pulled a bit of time on me at the pit stop. I caught back up to him at Ballagarey and got by him but we ended up swapping places a bit and I just brought the bike home. A big thanks to Brian, Adrian, John and Guy for preparing two awesome bikes today, Isla Scott for all the physio, the surgeon at Nobles, Ross Barker, for patching me up and getting me back out there and also a massive thanks to Dunlop and Arai.” Keith now has a day off before his next race on Wednesday, with the second Supersport race due to get underway at 10.30am. More, from a press release issued by Centurion Racing: Two TT Replicas For Cooper Stroud rider Dan Cooper and the Cornwall-based Centurion Racing team enjoyed a great day at the Isle of Man TT Races today when they finished in 27th and 35th respectively in the Supersport and Superstock races. The results, which included a new personal best lap for Dan of 119.199mph, also saw him pick up two bronze replicas, the first ones he has won. The Monster Energy Supersport 1 race saw Dan post an opening lap in excess of 117mph but the race was stopped due to an accident on lap two. The team made a few adjustments to the front end of the Triumph machine before he lined up for the shortened three-lap race. This time, his opening lap was 115.863mph to put him in 31st place as he opted to pit for fuel at the end of the lap which dropped him down to 35th. However, with the third and final lap being the only flying lap of the race, he was looking to move back up the order and a superb lap of 118.055mph saw him do just that and he crossed the line in an excellent 27th place, winning his first coveted bronze replica in the process. The Royal London 360 Superstock race was put back to a 6.30pm start and meant a long wait for the riders but Dan was soon on his way on the Honda Fireblade and a lap of 117.160mph on the first lap saw him slot into 37th place. A lap of almost 118mph second time around meant he’d moved up to 34th but as he came into the pits to refuel, he went over the 60kph speed limit and he was subsequently docked 30 seconds which dropped him back down the order. Unaware of the penalty, he pressed hard on the final lap and the 119.199mph lap saw him back to 35th at the chequered flag winning the final bronze replica. Speaking afterwards, Dan said; “I really enjoyed the Supersport race and with the front end feeling a bit light in the first start, we made a few changes in time for the re-start and the Triumph worked a lot better. It took me a while to get back into my rhythm and there were a couple of oil flags out on the course so I took it steady on the first lap and then got into my stride. I perhaps should have gone a bit quicker on my first lap but I’m learning all the time and, fortunately, I caught people in places where I could pass straightaway so I had a good go on the final lap and was delighted with an 118mph lap to finish 27th and pick up a bronze replica. There was a long gap in between the two races so it meant a lot of hanging around and it took me a while to get into the Superstock race. It was also getting quite dark and gloomy and I was wary of rain coming on but it was a trouble-free race. I was obviously disappointed to get the penalty and also to miss out on a 120mph lap but it’s another solid four laps and another bronze replica so I can’t complain.” Team owner Paul Rees added; “I’m chuffed to bits with today’s results and to pick up two bronze replicas in Dan’s second TT, and our first, is brilliant. Both races saw Dan put in some really good lap times and, more importantly, complete both races so it’s been a really valuable day in terms of mileage and knowledge. Dan’s really enjoying himself and you can see he’s learning more and getting more and more confident in each and every race with his increase in lap speeds. Both bikes are working really well and he brought them home safe and sound each time so we’ve had a very good day.” Centurion Racing will continue to show their support for Help for Heroes, their chosen charity, by displaying H4H logos on the bikes’ new livery designed by Rage Designs and team attire. Dan’s race helmet has been kindly donated by Arai and will be a one-off design by RichArt showing both the H4H and IOM TT logos. Team Principal Paul Rees, who spent 20 years in Her Majesty’s Royal Marine Commandos, was given permission to have the bikes carry the H4H logos in order to encourage the public to be more aware of this charity that supports our Armed Forces, many of whom are making daily sacrifices in Afghanistan and Iraq. Centurion Racing would specially like to thank Arai, FTR, GPR Racewear, Dunlop, Rage Designs, RichArt, R2 Logo Print & Embroidery, Akrapovic, Daytona, and Alan Smith of Smiths of Gloucester for personally supporting Dan, and all our friends and followers.