24 AND COUNTING!
Seeley relentless as he bags another three wins to increase his tally of NW200 victories
North West 200 specialist Alastair Seeley showed why he is the most successful racer in the event’s history with a hat-trick of victories. A Supersport double and victory in Saturday’s Superstock race brought the 38-year-old’s NW200 tally of wins to 24, nine more than the late Robert Dunlop. Robert’s wife, Louise presented Seeley with the Man of the Meeting award on Saturday evening.
Seeley also set a new 600cc lap record on the way to maintaining his record of winning a North West race every year since 2008.
For this year Seeley had a deal to ride the Tyco BMW superbike and superstock S1000RRs and an R6 with the EHA Yamaha squad. He said: “I knew the R6 would be good because I was 0.8s under the 600cc lap record at Kirkistown in a test last week.”
Seeley’s North West experience and tactical awareness are key to his success. He set his new lap record of 117.913mph on the final lap of Saturday’s race.
“I had a look behind out of University and saw there was a bit of a group so I pulled the pin,” he said after the Supersport victories. “I knew I could brake later and I bided my time to lose the tow. I still had plenty in the tank!” Seeley’s Superstock race win on the Tyco BMW over Peter Hickman was sweet revenge for his Thursday night defeat to the Smith’s BMW rider. Both races came down to winning moves on the brakes at the crucial Juniper chicane. In the first race Hickman dived up the inside but Seeley outfoxed Hickman in Saturday’s race by going for the outside line.
“I wanted to try and get a good run out of Black Hill to have a chance of a slipstream. I decided to go the long way round and I don’t think I could have got any more pressure on that front brake!”
‘I saw there was a group behind me out of University so I pulled the pin’