ISLE OF MAN – Qualifying for the Classic TT Races got underway on the Mountain Course on Wednesday afternoon.
Aside from some late showers in the Greeba area, conditions were generally favourable and it was Shaun Anderson who set the pace, the Banbridge rider lapping at 122.822mph in the Formula One class.
Riding the Stanford Racing by ARD Suzuki GSX-R 750 SRAD, Anderson was 0.727s quicker than Nathan Harrison (Greenall Racing Kawasaki) with Michael Russell topping the new-for-2026 Junior 600 class after lapping at 114.500mph on the Complete Plumbing Solutions Yamaha YZF-R6.
It was the Lightweight and Ultra-Lightweight classes that were out first though at 1.15pm and after an opening lap of 115.379mph on the Laycock Racing Yamaha, a few set-up changes saw Mike Browne up his pace second time around to an impressive 116.639mph.
That put him almost 47s clear of Stuart Hall who lapped at 112.130mph on the Whippet Racing Yamaha, which was a fraction quicker than Paul Jordan. Team-mate to Browne, he posted a second lap speed of 112.125mph with Michael Dunlop MBE slotting into fourth place on the leaderboard after a solitary lap of 111.875mph on the Milenco by Padgetts Motorcycles Honda.
Michal Dokoupil (Cookson Travel Yamaha) and Ryan Whitehall (Yellow House/DB Moto Yamaha) completed the top six at 109.539mph and 108.250mph respectively, but Hall had a fall at Laurel Bank on his third lap although he was reported to be conscious and talking.
In the concurrently run Ultra-Lightweight class, Paul Cassidy (106.065mph) set the pace on the Green Racing/Island Fuels Yamaha FZR400 and that put him almost five seconds clear of Joe Loughlin (105.657mph), the Irishman returning to the Mountain Course for the first time since he made his TT debut in 2022.
They were followed by Radley Hughes (103.423mph), Harley Rushton (101.600mph), Steven Price (99.619mph) and Russell Roebury (98.343mph).
The Formula One/Junior 600 session commenced just after 2pm, with Anderson and Harrison first away followed by Michael Evans, Julian Trummer, Jamie Coward and Dominic Herbertson.
There was little to choose between Anderson and Harrison on the opening lap as they circulated in close formation, the duo lapping at 122.822mph and 122.741mph respectively.
David Johnson (121.308mph) slotted into third on the Steadplan Racing Kawasaki and although his first attempt had to be aborted after clutch issues, Dunlop lapped at 121.402mph on the Team Classic Suzuki GSX-R750 SRAD.
Coward, on a second Greenall Racing Kawasaki, also had a few issues on his first lap, stopping at Ballacraine, but on his second lap he lapped at 121.758mph to move up to fourth on the leaderboard.
A few spots of rain were reported on the second lap but as well as Coward, Johnson (122.156mph), Dunlop (121.636mph) and Herbertson (121.500mph) all went quicker on their second laps.
In the Junior 600 class, Brian McCormack set the pace initially with a speed of 114.468mph on the JRC Racing Yamaha YZF-R6 but Russell eventually edged him out by just 0.332s with the early leaderboard completed by Tom Robinson (114.324mph), Cassidy (113.117mph), Julien Cregniot (112.729mph) and Barry Furber (111.568mph).
The Historic Senior and Historic Junior session then got underway but after a dozen riders left the line, the rest were held at the Grandstand for a short period due to light rainfall in the Greeba area.
Dean Harrison (101.353mph) and John McGuinness MBE (101.061mph) were amongst those first away in the Historic Senior class but when everyone else was able to get their session underway approximately 10 minutes later, Dunlop went quickest with a lap of 105.690mph on his Flitwick Motorcycles/SMV Royal Enfield.
That put him 25.4s clear of Conor Cummins (103.637mph) with the first lap speeds of Harrison and McGuinness keeping them in third and fourth and ahead of Rushton (100.629mph) and Paul Jordan (98.304mph).
It was a similar story in the Historic Junior class where Jordan and Rushton were two of the riders to encounter the rain, their opening laps of 96.445mph and 96.236mph ultimately placing them third and fourth quickest.
They were upstaged by Herbertson (98.284mph) and Stefano Bonetti (96.939mph) with Will Loder (96.112mph) and Dan Sayle (94.573mph) rounding out the top six. Meanwhile, 14-time Sidecar TT winner Ben Birchall completed his first solo qualifying lap of the Mountain Course with a lap of 87.852mph which placed him 13th quickest.
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©Words/Images above are from an official press release posted courtesy Isle of Man TT Races
For more Isle of Man TT Races news head to our dedicated page: Isle of Man TT Races News Home Page
or head to the official Isle of Man TT website iomttraces.com
What are the Isle of Man TT Races
There are very few sporting events in the world with the tradition, heritage, and prestige of the Isle of Man TT Races. Despite being the world’s oldest continuous motorsports event, the TT remains, however, as fascinating and relevant today – continuously inspiring new generations of riders to come and race the Mountain Course.
Largely unchanged since 1911, the 37.73 miles of public roads simply capture the imagination like no other motorcycling venue can. The TT Course, whilst difficult to learn, is even harder to master – requiring immense levels of skill and concentration as speeds nudge an incredible 200mph.
2026 TT Schedule is available at – https://www.iomttraces.com/racing/page/schedule/
TT+ is the official digital home of the Isle of Man TT Races – offering free, year-round access to the world’s greatest road racing event. Fans can enjoy an ever-growing library of exclusive original content, interviews, as well as over 30 years of archive race highlights.
TT+ brings viewers closer than ever to the riders, machines, and stories that define the TT. Available online and across smart TVs, mobile devices, and tablets, TT+ transforms how fans around the world experience the Mountain Course.
Access TT+ free at – ttplus.iomttraces.com/
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