BENNETTS LIGHTWAIGHT TT
It was a record-breaking Isle of Man TT this year and even the smallest lightweight class was not an exception. As the race started, Ivan Lintin, the two-time Lightweight winner, was fighting with Derek McGee of KMR Kawasaki and Michael Dunlop for the lead. By Ballaugh, however, Lintin had edged McGee to take the lead but only by 0.8 seconds. By Ramsey, Lintin had increased the gap from 0.8 seconds to 2.9 seconds and was pulling away. At the end of lap one, Lintin looked pretty strong in the lead with almost six seconds between him and McGee.
However, Lintin’s lead proved short-lived as the Dafabet Devitt Racing rider retired on lap two after posting a record-breaking time of 121.603 mph (195.701 km/h) on lap one. This pushed Michael Dunlop into the lead, which saw the Northern Irish racer do a 122.257-mph (196.754-km/h) lap to shatter Lintin’s record set by him on the previous lap. This was motivation enough for Michael as he continued to lead the race and eventually win it and create a new race record time, which was over a minute faster than before.
With the Lightweight win, Michael also became the third most successful racer at the TT with 18 wins. This would surely make the entire Dunlop family proud as two of the top three most successful TT racers come from this legendary family.
Derek McGee was also proud as he finished second on the podium, his best-ever result. Third place went to Michael Rutter, who finished the race at an average of 118.362 mph (190.485 km/h).