Isle of Man TT: Michael Dunlop takes 22nd win in opening Supersport race
- Published
Michael Dunlop sits four behind his uncle Joey's all-time Isle of Man TT wins record
Michael Dunlop secured his 22nd Isle of Man TT win by taking a dominant victory in the opening Supersport race.
Dunlop assumed the lead midway through lap one and extended his advantage, ultimately winning by 12.3 seconds from runner-up Peter Hickman.
It was a 10th success in the Supersport class for the Northern Ireland rider, who won both 600cc races last year.
The 34-year-old now sits four victories behind the record tally achieved by his legendary late uncle, Joey Dunlop.
He is just one win shy of the tally accumulated by John McGuinness and with seven further rides to come this week, the all-time record for wins at the event could come under threat.
Dunlop had been in scintillating form throughout practice week on the Isle of Man, including setting the fastest lap speed in qualifying for the Supersports, a category in which he holds a record number of wins.
Fractions of a second separated the leading contingent in the early stages of the race before the Ballymoney rider stamped his authority on proceedings on his MD Racing Yamaha.
A first lap of 128.305mph saw him build a 5.4-second lead over Dean Harrison - but by the end of the second circuit, an improved average lap speed of 129.136 increased his advantage to 13.5 seconds.
The difference between the leading pair was 17.5 seconds following the completion of lap three and Dunlop was able to manage his lead over the final 37.73 miles.
Triumph-mounted Hickman edged out Harrison for the final podium spot in the closing stages, seeing off his DAO Kawasaki Racing rival by a mere 0.39 seconds.
"That was a good race. The bike never missed a beat and the boys have been working hard all week to make that happen," said a delighted Dunlop in the winners' enclosure.
"I felt good and the bike felt good, I was able to back off in the last two laps, take it steady.
"I paced myself, hit a bit of traffic early on, but managed to calm myself down.
"When you are winning round here, it is pretty special, especially on your own bikes. I'll just keep riding my bike and whatever happens, happens."
Three English riders, Jamie Coward, Davey Todd and James Hillier, completed the top-six leaderboard.
The next race on the programme is the six-lap Superbike race on Sunday, with Dunlop, Hickman and Harrison again likely to be to the fore in the battle for 'big bike' honours.