History makers McGuinness and Mugen deliver again in SES TT Zero

John McGuinness broke his own SES TT Zero record in today’s Isle of Man TT Races with his teammate Bruce Anstey again following him home, as he did last year. Anstey was also inside McGuinnesses old lap record for the electric bike class.

John McGuinness was first away from the line but by Glen Helen Anstey had actually moved into the lead on timing, albeit with only a second separating the Mugen pair who had already established a 17 second lead over third placed Lee Johnson with his Victory Parker Racing teammate Guy Martin in fourth a further nine seconds back. Martin was a late replacement for William Dunlop who was injured earlier in the week during qualifying.

McGuinness had moved into the lead by the next timing point at Ballaugh Bridge with a lead of over two seconds from Anstey with the Team Mugen pair establishing a healthy lead at the front of the field. Johnson and Martin continued their challenge for the final podium spot with the Northern Ireleand rider establishing a lead of over 10 seconds from Martin at Ballaugh.

Robert Wilson consolidated fifth place for Belgium’s team Sarolea Racing while James Cowton (Brunel University) and Michael Sweeney (University of Nottingham) were going head to head in sixth and seventh for the honour of finishing the first university.

At the front of the field McGuinness was being made to work for the race win by Anstey with the gap closing to less than three seconds but the Morecambe Missile held on to win with a new lap record of 119.279mph (18:58.743) from Anstey (118.857/19:02.785) with Lee Johnston taking third for Victory/Parker Racing with 111.620mph – 20:16.881. Guy Martin (109.717/ 20:37.987), Robert Wilson (106.510/21:15.256) completed the top five with Michael Sweeney (73.156/30:56.695) taking the University honours for Nottingham.

More, from a press release issued by John McGuinness’ publicist:

McGuinness takes 22nd TT win with TT Zero victory

Morecambe’s John McGuinness took his 22nd victory at the Isle of Man TT races when he won Wednesday’s TT Zero in record breaking style.

Riding the Mugen Shinden Honda in the single lap race, John enjoyed a race long tussle with team-mate Bruce Anstey with both enjoying a spell in the lead but as the race entered it’s second half, John began to edge away.

Sure enough, he took the chequered flag four seconds clear of Anstey and did so with a new lap record of 119.279mph for the electric-powered motorbikes. It was his 22nd TT victory and 43rd podium since he made his debut in 1996.

The 43-year old was then back in action in the afternoon’s four-lap Supersport race where he was on board the 600cc Jackson Racing Honda once more. An opening lap of 124.111mph put the Morecambe Missile into ninth place and for the remaining three laps, he was locked in battle with team-mate Conor Cummins and fellow Honda rider Dan Kneen.

All three riders were going for seventh place with all three taking their turns in the position. A lap of 124.833mph on the second lap around the Mountain Course gave John the position but although he went quicker still on his final lap, at 125.542mph, he had to settle for eighth with Cummins getting the better of him by just 0.04s after 150 miles of racing!

John McGuinness: “I’m delighted to take another TT win and it’s unbelievable what the electric bikes are doing now. It doesn’t seem five minutes since I was watching Steve Hislop do 120mph on an RC30 so to almost do that now is phenomenal, particularly as the bike weighs 160 kilos. Conditions were perfect all the way round the course and it was a real pleasure to ride the bike again.”

“The 600 race was faultless and what’s not to enjoy when we’ve had a day like today. Sure, I’d like to be on the podium but I rode well, put in some good lap speeds and had no problems. We didn’t have the pace on the day to run at the front but that’s five finishes from five starts and the island’s buzzing so I’m happy enough.”

John’s final race of TT2015 will be in Friday’s 6-lap Senior.

More, from a press release issued by Victory Motorcycles:

• ·Lee Johnston rides a 111.62mph lap to his second TT podium
• ·Fourth for Guy Martin on a 109.717mph lap, just shy of the 110mph mark
• ·“It’s a proper fast bike, the Victory boys were spot on,” says Guy.

Isle of Man: Victory Racing is celebrating its first ever TT podium after Lee Johnston rode a 111.620mph lap in the SES TT Zero race to take third place.

Lee had ridden increasingly fast laps on successive practices throughout the week as he became more familiar with the intricacies of riding the electric motorcycle – including energy management and regeneration – and he rode his fastest lap to date just when it mattered most.

Lee said in the winner’s enclosure: “Yeah, awesome to be back on the podium again. Every time we go out, we’re getting faster. Think we had a little bit of battery left, so maybe could have went a bit quicker. Fair play to the Mugen boys, but at the end of the day they have been coming here for three years and in their first year they did nowhere near 110mph, so credit to the whole Victory team, it’s an absolutely awesome job. The bike’s so fun to ride because it’s so small, I really like riding it.”

Guy Martin, who stepped in to ride the bike on behalf of the injured William Dunlop, placed fourth, an equally sweet victory in some ways, as he had only ridden two practice laps on William’s No.6 machine ahead of the race. He also posted his fastest lap of the week in the race – a 109.717mph, just shy of the 110mph mark.

“It’s a proper fast bike,” he said. “The Victory boys judged it just right to use up all of the battery power as I came over the finish line. I’d need more time to properly get my head around it but I’m happy to have had the opportunity to ride it.”

For a first time at the TT, the team is thrilled that it has been so competitive. Victory Racing Team Manager, Brian Wismann, said: “I’m feeling very, very good. It was good day for Victory Racing on our first ever time at the TT. We accomplished what we set out to accomplish… got on to the podium, but we also got a 111mph average in our first ever TT Zero race. Speeds were good, the bikes were good and reliable, they looked great out there. I’m just very, very pleased with all the hard work the team’s put in and the work that the riders have done to get the bikes round here so quickly.”

Out of the 10 electric bike teams on the Isle of Man, seven of them entered the race. It is also the very first time that five teams have all achieved over 100mph laps under race conditions and is a strong indicator that electric racing technology is being taken seriously by many brands in anticipation of mass-produced consumer vehicles.

For Gary Gray, Director Motorcycle Product for Victory Motorcycles, the third and fourth place is reward for all the efforts the brand is putting into proving ‘American Performance’. He said: “I couldn’t be prouder of the team for putting a bike on the podium the first year out and for building the fastest American electric bike ever at the Isle of Man TT. I promised we would be competitive and beating nine of the 10 teams proves American performance.”

A podium result has also excited Parker, the makers of the GVM electric motor that propelled the bikes. Parker’s US-based strategic account manager, Kevin Holloway said: “We are proud of the entire Victory Racing team for the third and fourth place finishes in the TT Zero. Everybody worked so hard and we exceeded our expectations by setting an American lap record today.”

Victory Motorcycles has been flexing their muscles in various forms, not only by entering the Isle of Man TT, but also by taking part in professional drag racing, running a stunt team and fielding an entry in the iconic Pikes Peak Hill Climb with a prototype and custom race machine built by Victory Racing and Roland Sands Design, all which will be exhibited at the upcoming American Victory Rally in Denver and Colorado Springs, CO.http://www.victorymotorcycles.com/en-us/event/2015-additional-events-american-victory-rally-june