EVANS LOOKING TO BUILD ON 2023
Manxman Michael Evans eagerly awaits this year’s Isle of Man TT Races as he looks to build on his 2023 performances in all classes.
The 2017 double Manx Grand Prix winner has made consistent progress since racing around the Mountain Course resumed in 2022, both in terms of results and lap speeds. Last year saw him record his best finish to date with seventh in the second Supertwin race, with a near 117mph lap.
Last year also saw him claim 12th in the opening Monster Energy Supersport race and with two top twenty finishes on his own ME Racing Suzuki in the RST Superbike and Milwaukee Senior races, where he set a new personal best lap of 126.595mph, he’s ready to climb further up the leaderboard in 2024.
Commenting on his recent form, Evans said:
“Last year was the first time with the big Suzuki and although race week started well, we had a few handling issues during the week before ending strongly in the Senior,” he said. “Since then, we’ve found a few areas to assist in set-up and improved a lot of things. The bike lacks a bit of punch out of the corners, but I was pleased with how I performed at the recent North West 200.”
The Irish event saw Evans take four top twenty finishes on the Suzuki with tenth in the second Superbike race and 11th in the second Superstock race. Both classes are where Evans is looking to make the most improvements in at the TT.
“People see me more as a Supersport and Supertwin rider – and I agree they’ll be the classes that give me my best chances at this year’s TT – but I’ve still not shown my full potential in the 1000cc races. Staying with the same bike this year should help with that, as will the set-up changes we’ve made, and it’s the class where I’m hoping to make a big step forward. There’s lots more to come on the big bike and I definitely feel we can get some good results this year.”
Evans has switched machinery for the Monster Energy Supersport races, riding a 765cc Smith Racing Triumph, and excelled at the North West 200 with a brace of seventh place finishes. For the Entire Cover and Metzeler Supertwin races he’s also made a change, this time riding the Golden Site Solutions Kawasaki instead of the Aprilia he campaigned last year.
“There wasn’t a lot of difference between the Supersport bikes at the North West and Martin and Adam Smith have given me a great bike. It’s the first time I feel that we’re competing on a similar level to the front runners and the Triumph has good power and more reliability. It’s a cheaper option too so the results from the NW200 have given me a lot of confidence ahead of the TT.”
“I haven’t ridden the Kawasaki Twin yet, so I’m interested to see how it goes. The Aprilia was a good bike, but I’d like to think I could make the top five in the Supertwin races. Improving on last year’s results is the main aim in all classes.”
