Isle of Man TT
June 4, 2017
RST Superbike Race Results:
1. Ian Hutchinson (BMW S1000RR), Total Race Time 1:45:58.474, Average Race Speed 128.170 mph
2. Peter Hickman (BMW S1000RR), 1:46:03:544, 128.068 mph
3. Dean Harrison (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:46:11.545, 127.907 mph
4. James Hillier (Kaw ZX-10R), 1:46:13.281, 127.873 mph
5. Dan Kneen (BMW S1000RR), 1:47:50.068, 125.960 mph
6. Michael Rutter (BMW S1000RR), 1:47:50.203, 125.957 mph
7. David Johnson (Norton), 1:48:25.512, 125.273 mph
8. Josh Brookes (Norton), 1:48:39.174, 125.011 mph
9. William Dunlop (Yam YZF-R1), 1:48:50.858, 124.787 mph
10. Martin Jessopp (BMW S1000RR), 1:48:53.943, 124.728 mph
More, from a press release issued by Isle of Man TT Press Office:
HUTCHINSON TAKES RST SUPERBIKE WIN IN OPENING RACE OF 2017 ISLE OF MAN TT RACES
Ian Hutchinson took his 15th victory at the Isle of Man TT races fuelled by Monster Energy when he took a thrilling RST Superbike race on Sunday afternoon by five seconds from Peter Hickman, after Hickman had closed the gap down to 1.6s on the final lap.
Hutchinson’s final run over the Mountain on the Tyco BMW saw him edge clear from Hickman’s Smiths Racing machine, who claimed his maiden TT podium, with early race leader Dean Harrison taking third.
James Hillier (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) led at Glen Helen on the opening lap by 0.8s from Harrison with Hutchinson and Michael Dunlop tied for third but on the run to Ramsey Hairpin, Harrison was 1.3s quicker to turn his deficit into a lead of 0.5s. Dunlop was now in third, 0.7s behind Hillier, with Hutchinson, Hickman and Conor Cummins completing the top six. The returning Guy Martin on the Honda Racing machine was out though having crashed, fortunately without injury, at Doran’s Bend.
By the Bungalow, Dunlop was now in the lead and with an opening lap of 131.135mph he led Harrison by 1.8s. Harrison in turn was only half a second ahead of Hillier with Hutchinson and Hickman holding onto fourth and fifth. The leading five were all above 130mph with Dan Kneen up to sixth on the opening lap.
Second time around and Dunlop still led at Glen Helen but Harrison was quicker over the first nine miles to reduce the gap to 1.4s and by the time the riders passed through Ballaugh, he was leading Hillier by 5.3s with Dunlop and the Bennetts Suzuki out after retiring at Handley’s.
At Ramsey, Harrison’s extended his lead to 7.5s but Hutchinson was now up into second although he was only 0.4s clear of Hillier and at the Bungalow the latter had turned the tables, also reducing Harrison’s lead to 6.5s.
A second lap speed of 130.907mph meant Harrison’s lead was 5.4s at the pit stop with Hillier still in second and 1.6s clear of new third placed man Hickman. Hutchinson had dropped back to fourth but Hillier lost time getting away. The Manx pairing of Cummins and Kneen were now in fifth and sixth but they too had trouble at the pits with Cummins having a lengthy stop and Kneen picking up a 30s speeding penalty.
Early on the third lap, the leaderboard read Harrison, Hutchinson, Hickman and Hillier as Kneen dropped back to ninth and Cummins 17th and that meant David Johnson moved up to fifth on the Norton and Michael Rutter sixth.
By half race distance, Hutchinson led for the first time but only by 0.4s and only ten and a half seconds covered the top four with Hickman and Hillier holding station in third and fourth. Johnson and Rutter were still in fifth and sixth as Kneen, Bruce Anstey, William Dunlop and Brookes completed the top ten.
On lap four, there was little between the leaders. Harrison moved back into the lead at Glen Helen by 0.6s, the same margin at the next point through Ballaugh. However, by Ramsey Hutchinson was marginally back in front with just 0.07s separating the leading pair. Hickman was only five seconds further back in third but Anstey stopped at Ramsey hairpin before continuing and Steve Mercer and Gary Johnson were out at Cruickshanks and Sulby Bridge respectively.
Coming into the pits at the end of lap four and there was still only ten seconds covering the leading quartet but Hutchinson’s prowess up and down the Mountain gave him a 4s lead and it was now Hickman in second. His gap to Harrison was only 1.6s with Hillier a further four seconds back in fourth.
The pit stops saw Hutchinson lead with a 10s lead over Hickman but Hillier was back up to third with Harrison losing time and dropping back to fourth. Indeed, Hillier was up to second at Glen Helen as he circulated on the road with Hutchinson and the latter’s lead had risen considerably to 9.5s. Two more retirements though were Cummins and last year’s Privateer’s Champion Dan Hegarty.
Going into the final lap, Hutchinson still led but the gap to Hickman was only 7.9s at Glen Helen and by Ballaugh it was only 2.5s. Harrison was now in third as Hillier experienced fuel problems and the thrilling race still saw just 9.5s split the top four.
Hickman had reduced the gap further still at Ramsey Hairpin to 1.6s and it was all going to come down to the final run up and down the Mountain. And with a final lap of 130.738mph, it was Hutchinson who prevailed by 5s despite Hickman the quicker over the final 37.73 miles at 131.103mph.
Harrison claimed third ahead of Hillier with Kneen overcoming his pit lane penalty to take fifth from Rutter albeit by only 0.135s. Johnson, Brookes, William Dunlop and Martin Jessopp completed the top ten.
Horst Saiger was the first privateer home in 11th ahead of Sam West (12th) and Philip Crowe (14th).
More, from a press release issued by Bennetts Suzuki:
Dunlop retires from lead of Superbike TT
The Bennetts Suzuki team’s bid for a debut TT win ended in disappointment, after Michael Dunlop was forced to retire from the lead of today’s Superbike race.
After slotting into third place early on, Dunlop upped the pace to take the lead by the end of the opening circulation, with a lap of 131.135mph. Despite retirement, it remained the fastest lap of the six lap race.
He was extending his lead on lap two, before retiring with a technical issue at Handley’s.
Team manager, Steve Hicken, commented, “What can we say? We were looking good and Michael was comfortable and pulling away, and it says a lot that we set the fastest lap of the race on the opening lap. There was plenty more to come and we could have done a couple of 132s, comfortably. Until that point the bike was working well but sometimes these things happen. It’s frustrating but that’s racing the TT. We’ll strip the bike this evening to determine exactly what the issue was and work to resolve it ahead of Friday’s Senior TT.”
Isle of Man TT Superbike result: 1. Ian Hutchinson, 2. Peter Hickman, 3. Dean Harrison, DNF. Michael Dunlop.
More, from a press release issued by Bathams/SMT Racing:
Strong sixth place for Rutter in Superbike TT
Michael Rutter got his 2017 Isle of Man TT races campaign underway in fine style on Sunday afternoon with a fine sixth place on the Bathams/SMT Racing BMW in the six-lap Superbike race. The Bridgnorth rider completed the first lap around the 37.73-mile course in ninth place but worked his way up to fifth before pushed back to sixth, albeit by just 0.135s, by local rider Dan Kneen.
Weather conditions throughout practice week saw a considerable amount of wet weather which resulted in a number of sessions being cancelled and the Superbike race pushed back 24 hours from Saturday to Sunday. Despite encountering a number of issues during his limited track time, Michael was well to the fore on the leaderboard on the BMW S1000RR.
The race got underway at 2pm on Sunday and a solid opening lap of 128.045mph saw Michael complete the first lap of the Mountain Course in ninth place. A lap later this had become eighth with another 128mph+ lap and with Kneen being given a 30s penalty for speeding in pitlane, and a superb pitstop by the team, he was up to fifth at half race distance.
Times were close throughout the field and Michael was only one second clear of Australian David Johnson but he soon edged clear of the Norton rider before coming under threat in the closing stages from a charging Kneen.
The duo were circulating on the road in close formation and although the sixth and final lap saw Michael post his quickest lap of the race, at 128.796mph, it was the Manxman who was first across the line. The official margin was just 0.135s but it saw Michael claim his 51st TT finish, the identical number to that of Dad Tony.
Michael Rutter: “It was a good race for me today and after a few issues with both the handling of the bike and problems with my arms aching an awful lot, I’m delighted with sixth place. I could barely hang on to the to bike during Saturday’s practice session but some physiotherapy helped considerably and with changes to the bike, I felt a lot better coming into the race.”
“I struggled in the first couple of laps as the traction control light came on and it took a while to sort itself out whilst I was a bit unsettled after seeing Guy Martin’s crash. I was pleased to hear he was ok but it took me a while to get going which was why I was down a bit in the early stages. I was a bit overgeared but had a good steady ride and although it’s gutting to lose fifth place by such a margin, if Dan hadn’t had the 30s penalty he’d have been well clear. It’s a good start to the week and I’m looking forward to the Superstock race so a big thanks to the team as always.”
The next round, the 4-lap Superstock is scheduled to take place on Tuesday.
More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing:
Early end to Superbike TT for Honda Racing
Isle of Man TT
Snaefell Mountain Course, Isle of Man
The six-lap Superbike race at the Isle of Man TT came to an early end for Honda Racing and Guy Martin this afternoon, after a crash on the opening lap saw the team out of contention.
With near-perfect conditions around the 37.73-mile Mountain course the rescheduled race got underway at 2pm. However it wasn’t meant to be after a false neutral caused Martin to crash out of the running at Doran’s Bend, just before the first sector at Glen Helen.
Walking away from the incident, Martin is OK, but has some swelling to his wrist, so sat out of TT Zero practice this evening. With limited track time due to bad weather affecting practice sessions last week, this is another blow to Honda’s TT, where track time for the all-new Fireblade is vital.
The team will now regroup and prepare for Wednesday’s Senior TT practice, ahead of the final blue-riband race on Friday 9 June.
Jonny Twelvetrees
Team Manager
Well today was not our day! We were looking forward to the Superbike race, but unfortunately we didn’t make it to the first sector. Guy has told us he hit a false neutral at Doran’s, which caused him to run up the curb and then come down. He’s hurt his wrist a little, but he’s fine and nothing serious, it’s just bruised. He’s understandably shaken as it’s a very fast corner, but the main thing is that he’s OK! He decided to sit out of the TT Zero practice this evening just to rest his wrist and get some ice on it. It’s a shame that we didn’t get the six laps, as we need the track time and the data but, he’ll get nine laps in before the Senior on Friday, which with the lack of track time to date, is very welcomed. He’s got two Supersport races, the TT Zero and a one-lap Senior practice – so they will all be crucial. He’s upping his pace in each session and making solid progress, so we now have to wait for the final race, the Senior TT, which we are all looking forward to.
More, from a press release issued by Penz13.com BMW Motorrad Racing Team:
Douglas, Isle of Man. Another step forward for the Penz13.com BMW Motorrad Motorsport team at the Isle of Man TT. In today’s Superbike race Manxman Dan Kneen came home in a strong fifth spot to equal his best TT race result so far when he was 5th in the 2010 Supersport TT and his best result on the big bikes ever. It’s also the team’s best Isle of Man TT result.
On top of that, Kneen powered through to his fifth place despite being penalized by 30 seconds for speeding in pit lane after his first pit stop after lap two whereas team’s data showed him rolling in 57 km/h and 60 allowed, so once more there is a question behind the official time keeping measurements in a Isle of Man TT race.
In the end Kneen got his fifth by only 0.135 seconds over Michael Rutter in sixth. Kneen needed for the six lapper a time of 01:47:50,068 hours, which means a total average speed of 125.960 miles per hour. The race win went to fellow BMW rider Ian Hutchinson.
Team mate Alessandro “Alex” Polita finished another TT race in his second year at the Isle of Man, coming home in 40th position. The Italian did his six laps in 1:58:38,057 hours, which meant an average speed of 115.015 miles per hour. Polita missed out on a Bronze replica by only around 1.5 miles in average speed.
Dan Kneen – Rider:
“I am mega happy tonight but also a bit tired now. It’s been a very good race and I am more than happy with this fifth in a big bike’r race. Its not only my best result in the Superbike and Senior races, but also for the whole penz13 team and I am delighted to see everyone so happy. I don’t really know what happened in pit lane, we have to evaluate that one before we go out on the Stocker and into the Senior. But for tonight, I am more than happy and delighted.”
Alex Polita – Rider:
“I am not too happy today. The first three or four laps were not so bad, but I am not as fast as I want to be. On the last two laps I became some problems with my stomach and I had to throw up in the helmet almost. I hope to have a better Superstock race and I will push for my best.”
Rico Penzkofer – Team Principal:
“I am happy tonight, very, very happy. Again we proved to have taken the right decisions in riders and we are growing as a team. Dan’s fifth place is the best our team ever achieved here on the Mountain Course and we are going to celebrate that one tonight. We are not entirely sure what happened and why we got the penalty, but we’ll go into it and make sure it does not happen again. Alex is not too happy today but still it is a strong result by him. It’s only his second time at the Isle of Man and it’s just a pity missing out on the replica so shortly but we are convinced he is going to improve further on course of the week. We also must not forget the restricted practice time we had this past week and he came home safe and that’s the most important.”
More, from a press release issued by Tyco BMW/TAS Racing:
Ian Hutchinson takes his sensational 15th win at the TT and puts TAS Racing back on the top step on his Tyco BMW S1000RR after an incredibly tight and tense race, with ‘Hutchy’ taking the title with a five second advantage over fellow BMW rider Peter Hickman.
Following an incident earlier in the race at Greeba Castle the ‘Bingley Bullet’ found himself behind a backmarker through the yellow flagged section of the course which narrowed his lead of +11 seconds coming down the Mountain to just +2 seconds at Glen Helen on the sixth and final lap
However, some impeccable teamwork by the whole Tyco BMW team, with two fast pit-stops, most certainly aided the ‘Bingley Bullet’ to take the first win of the week.
After a difficult week with Manx weather causing lack of practice time, niggly problems persisting throughout the week and a change of tyre for this season, the Tyco BMW team and BMW Motorrad UK are obviously delighted to be rewarded with the prestigious RST Superbike title.
Philip Neill: “For TAS Racing as a team this is win 17 at the TT which is fantastic but more significantly this is our first Superbike TT win with Tyco Security Products and BMW Motorrad UK as a team and we are delighted to be able to reward them with this for all their support.
Alongside some fantastic riding by Hutchy – I also want to mention how good the team were today, their hard work and slick delivery cannot be underestimated.”
Ian Hutchinson: “We had been practicing our pit stops throughout the week when it wasn’t raining and again at 9am this morning which has definitely paid off. I needed every bit of help, especially with the yellow flag at Greeba Castle which made it very difficult to determine what speed we could get through there. I want to thank the medical staff and marshalls for enabling the race to continue and every bit of credit to them for trusting us to ride safely past them. There was a lot of traffic through the race with back markers – but I have learnt through the years not to panic about them and just do your best and get past them as safely and as smoothly as you can – it’s part of a typical 6 lap TT race!
A massive thanks to the whole Tyco BMW team that have delivered everything that I have asked for and trusting what I thought would work. The team have deserved the big bike win – they put so much work and effort into all the bikes and they always look impeccable when you walk up to them – it makes you want to win on it”
More, from a press release issued by Smiths Racing:
Hickman Storms To Debut TT Podium For Smiths
Gloucester-based Smiths Racing BMW got their 2017 Isle of Man TT Races campaign off to a great start this afternoon with Peter Hickman claiming a brilliant second place in the six-lap RST Superbike TT race.
Competing in his fourth TT, the Louth-based rider had closed to within 1.6s of race leader Ian Hutchinson on the final lap and although Hutchinson called upon all his experience to edge away, eventually winning by 5.1s, Hickman took his maiden TT podium.
Conditions during practice week had seen a number of sessions around the 37.73-mile Mountain Course cancelled and all riders came into the six-lap race with limited track time. The Superbike TT race was subsequently put back 24 hours to allow everyone extra practice time yesterday and so eventually got underway at 2pm today.
A solid opening lap of 130.304mph on the Smiths BMW S1000RR put Peter into fifth place but race leader Michael Dunlop retired on the second lap and with Hicky overhauling Hutchinson, he was up to third at the end of lap two, which saw the first of the pit stops.
Holding onto third place at half race distance, a lap of 129.903mph fourth time around saw the 30 year old move up to second and he was only 4.1s adrift of new race leader Hutchinson.
Going into the final lap, the gap had increased to eight seconds but for the first two thirds of the lap, Peter ate into Hutchinson’s lead. As they swept through Ramsey for the sixth and final time, the difference between the two riders was just 1.6s and although he lapped at 131.103mph, Peter had to settle for second place after a scintillating race.
It was his best ever result at the TT, improving upon his fourth place in last year’s corresponding race, and having been well to the fore on the practice leaderboard in each class, the whole team are now looking forward to the rest of race week.
Peter Hickman: “I’m delighted with my first ever TT podium especially as I thought I should have had it in last year’s Senior race. I had no such problems this year and although I was a bit steady at the beginning of the race, I gradually got into it. The lack of practice has affected us all and we’re not lapping as quick as what we were doing last year and although I got to within two seconds of Hutchy, I knew how strong he’d be over the Mountain. I got a little bit excited when I saw my pitboard saying how close it was and although I lost a bit of time at the pits, the last thing I want to do is get a penalty, and the boys did a mega job. The bike never missed a beat, the Dunlop tyres were great and the Ohlins suspension guys did a fantastic job so it’s a great start to the week.”
Rebecca Smith, Team Manager: “We’re over the moon with the result and it was a fantastic race to be part of. We’ve completely changed the bike since the North West 200 and a lot of work’s gone in to getting Pete where he is today so full credit to everyone involved. He rode a fantastic race and whilst we lost a bit of time at the pit stops to Hutchy, the boys did a great job at both pit stops to get him in and out as quickly as possible and we’re really looking forward to the rest of the week.”