Isle of Man TT: Peter Hickman storms to Superstock race one triumph
- Published
Peter Hickman has now won the last four editions of the Superstock TT race
Peter Hickman clinched his 10th Isle of Man TT win and a fourth success in a row in the Superstock class by taking victory in Monday's three-lapper.
Having taken second behind Michael Dunlop in the Supersport and Superbike races, Hickman saw off the Northern Irishman by 23 seconds on the Stockers.
Hickman led by 2.7 seconds after lap one and extended his advantage throughout on his FHO Racing BMW.
DAO Kawasaki-mounted Dean Harrison completed the podium places in third.
The familiar leading trio of Hickman, Dunlop, riding a Honda, and Harrison, had occupied the top positions in the qualifying speeds and the early stages of the race saw those leading contenders separated by just fractions of a second.
Hickman began to pull clear on the timesheets however and enjoyed a narrow lead over MD Racing rider Dunlop at the end of the first 37.73-miles thanks to a lap speed of 133.979mph.
Dunlop's deficit after the second circuit was 5.3 seconds and the Ballymoney man was forced to settle for runner-up position on this occasion as his bid to secure a fourth Superstock win and a first since 2014 fell just short.
Harrison was a further 14.82 seconds in arrears of the second-placed man at the chequered flag.
Hickman's average speed on the third lap was the fastest of the race at 134.331.
Davey Todd secured fourth position, with fellow Englishmen James Hillier and Jamie Coward making up the top six and Conor Cummins seventh just days after being admitted to hospital with an infection.
Hickman's victory draws him level with Giacomo Agostini, Ian Lougher and Stanley Woods on 10 TT wins, and just one behind the totals achieved by Steve Hislop and Phillip McCallen.
The 36-year-old from Burton-on-Trent also won the Superstocks in 2018, 2019 and 2022 and will have the opportunity to further add to that winning streak as a second race for the class has been added to the programme for 2023. That will take place on Friday.
"Right from the start the bike felt awesome. I had no problems whatsoever," said Hickman after the race.
"I hadn't even ridden the bike since Wednesday as I was so happy with it. We found a really good setting so we parked it to work on the Superbike.
"I just enjoyed myself on the last lap, doing a few wheelies and waving at the crowd.
"This place is just so amazing to ride and when you have that little bit of a buffer you can really enjoy it."