MONSTER ENERGY SUPERSPORT TT - TOP 20

This year’s Isle of Man TT Races will again feature two four-lap Monster Energy Supersport races, but unlike previous years where the middleweight class has opened the race programme, in 2026 they are scheduled for Tuesday and Friday of race week.

With some riders not contesting the class and others having, arguably, a better opportunity and chance for success, the top 20 seeded riders have a notably different complexion as they all look to wrestle the race wins away from Michael Dunlop MBE, the Ulsterman having won all eight Supersport races to take place since 2022.

Several riders will retain the same number as what they’ll run in the 1000cc race, but with no John McGuinness in the Supersport field, the honour of starting at number one goes to Mike Browne on the Boyce Precision/Russell Racing Yamaha. The team will run the YZF-R9 in 2026 though, the first time the machine has appeared on the Mountain Course, but the bike has performed superbly on the world stage and it’s a class where Browne will have the podium firmly in his sights.

2026 Supersport TT Number One: Mike Browne

That applies to Paul Jordan, the Jackson Racing powered by Prosper2 rider switching to Ducati power in 2026 as he starts ten seconds behind Browne at number two. Jordan has considerable form in the class having finished inside the top eight in five of the last six races to take place. That includes a brilliant fourth place in last year’s second race when he was only beaten by Dunlop, Dean Harrison and Davey Todd which highlights his Supersport potential.

Harrison, like his other races, starts at number three on the Honda Racing machine, the Laxey-based rider having one Supersport race win to his name. That was back in 2018, but he’s been close on more than one occasion since and has stood on the podium in each of the last eight Supersport races. That will make him more determined than ever to get another win. He is also contesting the British Supersport Championship this year, so confidence should be high.

Confidence should also be high for Jamie Coward who starts at number four on the Rapid Honda. He’s finished in the top six in five of his last six Supersport races, including a fourth-place finish in 2024, when he also set the fifth fastest lap ever recorded in the class. Making the switch from Triumph to Honda, it will be interesting to see how he fares on the CBR600RR.

Jamie Coward switching from Triumph to Honda

Next to go will be David Johnson on the CD Racing Kawasaki and then it’s the turn of the man they all have to beat – Michael Dunlop. Fifteen of his 33 TT career wins have come in the Supersport class, underlining his strength, whether he’s on a Yamaha, Honda or Ducati, victories have come his way. He dominated last year on the Ducati Panigale V2, lapping at more than 130mph in race one, so it’s little wonder he sticks with the same machine for 2026, this time under the Scars/MD Racing banner.

Just like the 1000cc races, Josh Brookes will start at number seven, although he won’t be riding for DAO Racing in the Supersport races but will be on board the Uggly & Co. Racing next generation GSX-R750 Suzuki instead. The potential of the bike is clear and Brookes, a former World Supersport Championship race winner, will be hoping he’s the one to take it to the podium.

The next three riders are all Triumph-mounted, with team-mates Davey Todd and Peter Hickman lining up either side of Dafabet Racing’s Michael Evans. Todd will contest the Supersport class on a Triumph for the first time at the TT with Swan Racing by PHR Performance, while Hickman rides an identical machine under Trooper sponsorship. Hickman’s last Supersport victory came in 2019, with Todd still seeking his first win in the class, while Evans has established himself as a consistent top-ten finisher.

The Manxman should learn plenty from Todd and Hickman in both qualifying and race situations with another local, Conor Cummins, starting from his regular number 11 slot. Like Brookes, he’ll ride a GSX-R750 Suzuki, using the same North Lincs Components machine that James Hind, a TT absentee in 2026, took to fifth and seventh place finishes last year.

That will provide Cummins with plenty of optimism with his place on the Burrows Engineering/RK Racing Ducati taken by Ian Hutchinson who starts ten seconds behind him at number 12. With eight Supersport wins, the Bingley rider is the second most successful rider in the class, although it marks his first TT outing on Ducati machinery.

Ian Hutchinson marking his first TT outing on Ducati at number 12

An outside contender for the podium, Dominic Herbertson starts at number 13 with the Hexham rider having his best chance in the class on the KTS Macadam Triumph Factory Racing machine. He’s never finished in the top six of a Supersport race but won’t get a better opportunity than the one he’s been presented with this year so expect him to take it with both hands.

More next-generation machinery is to be found at numbers 14 and 15 with Shaun Anderson and Rob Hodson lining up on the Stanford Racing by ARD Suzuki and SMT Racing Ducati respectively. Hodson finished sixth in race one last year when Yamaha-mounted so is clearly one to watch.

Nathan Harrison will go at number 16 for the Supersport races, again riding a H&H Motorcycles Honda with the remainder of the top twenty completed by riders not seeded in the Superbike, Superstock or Senior races.

Michael Sweeney (EM Building Yamaha), Joe Yeardsley (SpinArena.net Suzuki) and Joey Thompson (TH Racing Honda) are rewarded for recent Supersport results and will occupy numbers 17 to 19. Adam McLean was due to start at number 20 on the CD Racing Kawasaki, but recent surgery has forced him to withdraw from this year’s event.