DUNLOP AND LOUGHLIN TAKE VICTORIES IN LIGHTWEIGHT AND ULTRA-LIGHTWEIGHT CLASSIC TT RACES
Michael Dunlop MBE made it two wins in a day as he won the 2026 Lightweight Classic TT race on Sunday afternoon, the Milenco by Padgetts Motorcycles Honda rider lapping at 119.081mph on the final lap to win by more than three minutes from Michael Sweeney (IMS/CSC Racing Yamaha) with Rhys Hardisty (GATC/Phil Anslow Yamaha) completing the podium in third.
It was Joe Loughlin (G2 Technical Services Ltd Kawasaki) who was victorious in the concurrently run Ultra-Lightweight race, his final lap of 113.524mph the quickest ever lap of the Mountain Course by a 400cc machine, finally bettering Jim Moodie’s mark of 112.40mph set in 1993. He reclaimed the lead from Owen Monaghan (DB Telecom/RLT Transport Kawasaki) on the final lap with Paul Cassidy (Green Racing/Island Fuels Yamaha) in third.
Through Glen Helen on the opening lap, Dunlop led the Lightweight class by two seconds from Mike Browne (Laycock Racing Yamaha) with Sweeney ten seconds further back in third. Paul Jordan on the second Laycock Racing machine was only half a second behind Sweeney in fourth as Chris Moore (Outhwaite Plant/Silverstar/iHeat Yamaha) and Hardisty slotted into fifth and sixth respectively.
By Ballaugh, Dunlop’s lead had crept out to 3.4s with Sweeney pulling three seconds clear of Jordan in third whilst Hardisty had overhauled Moore for fifth, but Browne was quicker on the run to Ramsey and cut Dunlop’s advantage to 3.3s. There was disappointment for Jordan though as he retired at Ballaugh Bridge.
As they crossed the tramlines at the Bungalow for the first time, Browne had halved Dunlop’s advantage to 1.7s and although Dunlop had the quickest opening lap at 118.336mph, Browne’s lap of 118.284mph meant he cut the deficit to just half a second as they made their compulsory pit stop at the end of the lap.
Browne reduced Dunlop's advantage to just half a second on the opening lap.
Sweeney (113.780mph) remained in third and he was now 12.6s ahead of Moore (112.585mph) with Hardisty (111.864mph) and Ryan Whitehall (110.562mph) completing the top six. Michael Grigson was in seventh ahead of Dan Sayle, but the latter retired in the pits.
In the Ultra-Lightweight class, Loughlin’s opening lap of 110.094mph gave him a 9.3s lead over Cassidy (109.269mph) with Monaghan (109.113mph) only 1.7s further back in third as Harley Rushton (IMS/CSC Racing Yamaha), Radley Hughes (Kawasaki) and Charlie Hopkins (Kawasaki) completed the top six. Tom Snow was the leading 125cc runner in eighth.
Dunlop’s pit stop was significantly quicker than Browne’s and that could be seen at Glen Helen on lap two, the difference between the two having shot out to 13.1s. There was also change further back as Moore moved ahead of Sweeney albeit by just 0.4s.
It wasn’t just the Lightweights where was plenty of change either as Monaghan led Loughlin at Glen Helen second time around, the difference between the two 13s. With a larger tank fitted, Monaghan didn’t take on fuel at his pit stop and that enabled him to go clear.
Loughlin and Monaghan traded the lead throughout the Ultra-Lightweight contest before the race was decided on the final lap.
Onto Ballaugh and Dunlop added another 1.6s to his lead with Sweeney moving back into third whilst Loughlin took 1.6s out of Monaghan’s lead, the gap down to 11.3s at the midway point of the race.
Dunlop led Browne by 16.6s at Ramsey second time around but more drama followed as the latter failed to make it to the Bungalow, the Irishman later reported as a retirement at the Mountain Mile. That meant Dunlop’s lead over new second placed rider Sweeney now stood at 1m49s.
Dunlop flashed across the line with a second lap speed of 115.510mph and as he continued on his way on the final lap, his lead was two minutes over Sweeney. Moore, Hardisty, Whitehall and Grigson rounded out the top six whilst further back on the Mountain Course, Loughlin was continuing to eat into Monaghan’s lead, the gap between the two down to 8.8s as they rounded Ramsey Hairpin. And as they started their final lap, Monaghan’s lead was down to 3.2s.
Dunlop’s lead over Sweeney stood at 2m16s at Glen Helen on the final lap but Hardisty was now in third as Moore went out at Union Mills and Loughlin moved back ahead of Monaghan in the battle for supremacy in the Ultra-Lightweight class, his previous deficit turning onto a 2.4s advantage.
Dunlop sealed a second consecutive Lightweight Classic TT victory with a final lap of 119.081mph.
A final lap speed of 119.081mph ultimately saw Dunlop take his second Lightweight Classic TT win in a row, his final winning margin over Sweeney a commanding 3m03s with Hardisty completing the podium in third, the Welshman back on a Classic TT podium for the first time since 2015. Grigson, Will Loder, Jeffrey Vromant and Steve Bayley were the only other Lightweight riders to finish.
Meanwhile, Loughlin won the Ultra-Lightweight race and did so in style with a stunning final lap of 113.524mph sending him 22.3s clear of Monaghan, who was also above 111mph, with Cassidy rounding out the podium in third. And with Rushton having to push in from Governor’s Dip, eventually finishing 14th, Steven Price, Tom Snow and Brandon Brinded completed the top six. Snow, who lapped at 103.032mph, was the first 125cc rider home.
