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IOMTT: Monster Energy Supersport TT Race 2 Results

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In addition to the TT Zero race, Wednesday at the 2015 Isle of Man TT played host to Race 2 of the Monster Energy Supersport TT. Despite the weather that had played havoc during the practice week, conditions for the second Supersport TT were perfect.

As such, the fans were out in force to see who would grab the checkered flag. Bruce Anstey had shown himself capable of winning, taking the RST Superbike TT, and of course Ian Hutchinson has been the talk of the TT.

Generally not a top pick in the supersport class, John McGuinness has been off his pace this year, though coming off the TT Zero win, he certainly seemed on point Wednesday.

Reversing his decision to sit out the second supersport race, Michael Dunlop lined up on Glencrutchery Road, and certainly cannot be counted out of a solo-class race, especially one on a 600cc machine.

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Racing

IOMTT: SES TT Zero Race Results

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It might be the shortest event during the TT fortnight, but the TT Zero packs the more technology and development than the other TT races combined. Every year, the electric race bikes make leaps of progress in their pace, and for 2015 the unofficial mark to beat was the 120 mph barrier.

Team Mugen seemed close to that mark during the practice sessions, with John McGuinness posting a timed 118 mph lap. With Bruce Anstey already a race winner from the Superbike TT, and McPint always looking good on the Shinden race bike, the duo was heavily favored to win.

This year’s TT Zero also sees the return of Brammo to the Isle of Man, disguised as the Victory Racing team.

Victory was originally slotted to have Lee Johnston and William Dunlop as its riders, but Dunlop’s crash during the Superstock race meant his TT racing was over for this year. Luckily, his Tyco BMW teammate, Guy Martin, was available and keen to ride the electrics, and thus substituted for the injured Dunlop.

Other entries include Saroléa and Saietta, as well as the university teams from Brunel, Kingston, and Nottingham.

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Racing

Video: Ian Hutchinson Gives Michael Dunlop a Surprise

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The Isle of Man TT is a time trial event, meaning that riders are ultimately competing against the clock, not necessarily against the other riders on the course.

Usually when a rider has caught another rider on the course, it means one of them overcame an initial 10 second separation, and thus is considerably faster than the other.

The general protocol then is to let the faster rider through. This benefits the faster rider, who clearly has a superior pace to the slower rider. But, it also benefits the slower rider, who can get a tow from the faster rider, and benefit from their added confidence on the course.

As such, it’s rare to see riders get too close to each other on the Snaefell Mountain Course. Then again…this is motorcycle racing, and these are motorcycle racers…

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Racing

IOMTT: RL360 Superstock TT Race Results

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The Superstock TT is an interesting part of the Isle of Man TT. As the name implies, it features liter-class machines, but in a near-stock level of trim. That being said, the speeds attained by the Superstock machines touches near to the highly tuned Superbike machines, with 130+ mph laps being a reality.

The Superstock machines only compete once in the TT fortnight though, whereas there are two Supersport races, and the Superbikes basically get two goes of things, with the Superbike and Senior TT having a staggering overlap in machinery.

With all the weather, the sole chance to run the RL360 Superstock TT was pushed to Tuesday, and was the only race to run today. But, it certainly did its part in providing TT fans with some entertainment.

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Racing

IOMTT: Guy Martin Will Race Victory’s Electric Bike

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In a surprise move last night at the 2015 Isle of Man TT, Guy Martin climbed aboard the Victory Motorcycles electric bike that will race in Wednesday’s SES TT Zero race.

The move came about after Martin’s teammate, William Dunlop, who was also set to race for Victory in the TT Zero, crashed at Laurel Bank during the Superstock practice session yesterday, breaking his ribs in the process. As such, Dunlop will not compete in the rest of the TT races.

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Racing

Superbike TT from Glen Helen with Tony Goldsmith

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After a delay of 24 hours due to high winds on the Isle of Man the Superbike TT finally got underway at 2pm on Sunday.

I had decided before this year’s TT that I would photograph the Superbike race from the Glen Helen section. Around 9 miles from the start, Glen Helen is a tight tree lined section that would provide plenty of variety for the six-lap race.

I hope you enjoy the following selection of photos from that excursion.

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Columns

Trackside Tuesday: 2015 Isle of Man TT Teaser

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It’s hard to believe that another Isle of Man TT is almost upon us — the racing this year has the potential to be the best we’ve ever seen. With all the usual suspects back, the pace at the front is going to be hot.

Will we see the first 133 mph lap of the Mountain Course? Can anyone stop Michael Dunlop’s dominance? Will John McGuinness edge closer to the 26 wins of the legendary Joey Dunlop?

Then of course there’s the question that everyone is fed up of asking, can Guy Martin finally take his first win? This year could be his best chance as he’s arguably got the best machinery he’s ever had at the TT.

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Racing

Video: Honda Previews the Road Racing Season

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When it comes to real road racing, the boys on Hondas are always the short-list of whom to beat. Gearing up for the North West 200 this weekend and the rapidly approaching Isle of Man TT, the road racing season is firmly upon us.

Never mind circuits and race tracks, these guys let it all hang out on public roads, with speeds approaching and surpassing 200 mph on some courses. Make no mistake, this is risky business.

Mental preparedness and track knowledge are key, but that doesn’t mean that machine shakedowns are unnecessary. Although the Honda CBR1000RR racing package hasn’t changed much over its eight years of use, HRC has been able to refine the Fireblade to be a keen, and more importantly, a reliable weapon on the roads.

This year, John McGuinness and Conor Cummins will wear the factory HRC livery, as they take on the other top riders. Honda has put together a quick video of the two racers, with their thoughts on the 2015 season. Check it out after the jump.

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Racing

Victory Entering an Electric Race Bike at Isle of Man TT

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It looks like we were only partially correct in our news that Brammo would be returning to the Isle of Man TT, as the brand’s sister company, Victory Motorcycles, will in fact be racing an electric entry — one that looks like a rebadged Brammo Empulse RR — in the TT Zero event at the historic road race.

According to its press release, Victory Motorcycles will field a two-rider team, comprised of William Dunlop and Lee Johnston (a photo of “General Lee” testing a Brammo superbike is what initially sparked this news).

While Victory is calling its racing platform a “Victory electric race prototype motorcycle” the chassis and fairings give way to a shape we recognize as the Brammo Empulse RR electric superbike.

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Racing

Is This Going To Be Guy Martin’s Last Isle of Man TT?

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There has been a lot of talk around Guy Martin’s 2015 Isle of Man TT bid, with several outlets speculating with various amounts of reliability as to whether this will be the charismatic rider’s last TT.

The latest publication to add fuel to the fire is Scunthorpe Telegraph, a local English paper, which quotes Martin in a Q&A session as saying, “I’ll go there whatever happens. Whatever I do I’ll give it 100%. If I go and finish 20th I still know I’ve done my best. It’s the last time I’m doing it.”

“Let’s be honest, it would be mint to win. It would be great, I love motorbikes,” Martin added. “But it is only motorbikes. Tomorrow is another day. I’ve this sort of mindset – it is what it is.”

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Bikes

Limited Edition Bimota BB3 TTrofeo Debuts in the UK

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We already know that Bimota plans to go racing at the 2015 Isle of Man TT (and other road races) with Brit Ben Wylie and American Brandon Cretu — the duo riding on a pair of Bimota BB3 superbikes.

What we didn’t know is that Bimota will make 60 replicas of these race bikes available to consumers, calling the machines the Bimota BB3 TTrofeo.

The BB3 TTrofeo bikes will have the same race livery as the road racing superbikes, along with “select performance upgrades” which we take to mean bolt-on goodies, not engine work.

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