MICHAEL DUNLOP - A TON OF SUCCESS FOR THE KING OF THE MOUNTAIN
When Michael Dunlop lines up on the start line for the second Supersport race this year, he will become only the seventh rider to have ever chalked up 100 starts at the Isle of Man TT.
Making his debut in the Superbike TT back in 2007, Dunlop entered with the massive weight of expectation on his shoulders that comes with simply being a Dunlop. It’s almost impossible to think of a parallel in any other sport where one family has enjoyed so much success - and equally so much heartbreak.
Now, 94 races later and despite the mountains of pressure, Michael has lived up to it and then some. It took just two years for him to climb to the top step of the TT podium, taking victory in the second Supersport race in 2009. At the time those lining the Mountain Course thought they were just watching the next in the Dunlop dynasty to carry on the family name, little did they know they were witnessing the start of one of the greatest TT chapters ever written.
The first of many - Michael Dunlop celebrates his maiden TT victory in 2009, alongside Bruce Anstey.
A Decade of Dominance
Such has been Dunlop’s success at the TT that since that first win, he’s only gone two years without adding to his tally - 2010 and 2015. On five occasions he has come away with four victories, including the last three years, the only rider to achieve such a hat-trick in the history of the event.
That run of form led to the smashing of his uncle Joey’s long-standing record of race wins in 2024. With a further six more wins coming since, his total sits at its current tally of 33. We say current tally, because it’ll be a brave man who bets against it remaining at that at the end of race week this year. Any time the Ballymoney rider lines up on Glencrutchery Road, you know there’s the potential for a winning run, in any class.
The most likely chance of a Dunlop is likely to remain in the Supersport category. With a record 15 wins in the Supersport class to his name, almost double that of second-placed Ian Hutchinson (who has eight), Dunlop has had a firm grip on the category since the TT made its post-Covid return in 2022.
Returning to ride the Ducati Panigale V2 that served him well in 2025, there is a very real possibility Dunlop could extend his race-winning run in the class to an astonishing ten, a feat unmatched on a solo and only bettered by Ben and Tom Birchall’s run of 11 victories in the sidecar category starting with the second race in 2016 all the way through to a fifth successive double in 2023.
History made - Dunlop powers to his 33rd TT victory, rewriting the record books once again.
A Lightweight Heavyweight
Dunlop has also been the man to beat in the Supertwin class for almost a decade, winning all but two races since 2018, and the two he didn’t win were non-finishes through mechanical issues. Despite winning both races comfortably in 2025, it remains to be seen if that run of form will continue with the adoption of Sportbike rules in the Lightweight category.
Recent results internationally have suggested that it might be a tougher challenge for Dunlop’s trusty Paton this year, and the North West 200 certainly saw a favouring towards the Yamaha R7s and Aprilia 660s. That being said, results from Northern Ireland drew similar predictions last year, and we were treated to the dominant display we saw from Dunlop nonetheless, which goes to show that you can’t read into anything until the tap on the shoulder outside the Grandstand.
Dunlop is unbeaten in every Supertwin race he’s finished since 2018.
Big Bikes, Big Decisions
While the stats may suggest that Michael’s success over the past two TTs has been limited to the smaller capacity races, he has still been very much in the conversation when it comes to the big bikes, and could be a force to be reckoned with if his plans come to fruition in the Superbike class.
Dunlop made headlines across the road racing world in April when he announced that he would be riding a Ducati Panigale V4 for the fastest class of motorcycle, however since then plans seem to be somewhat up in the air. On the eve of the North West 200, Dunlop swapped the Ducati for his old Honda Fireblade, citing the need for further testing and development before getting it to the roads “in the future”.
Whether that future is as soon as next week remains to be seen, and it will be unsurprising if we see Michael out on both the Honda and the Ducati throughout qualifying week as he assesses the situation. Should he choose the Panigale, Dunlop will be chasing the accolade of becoming the first rider to win a Superbike or Senior TT aboard a Ducati. While he ended Ducati’s 30-year drought in Supersport TTs last year, the closest the Italian manufacturer has come in a ‘big bike’ race is second, achieved by Iain Duffus and John McGuinness in the Senior TT in 1995 and 2003 respectively.
Whichever Superbike Dunlop chooses, he will once again ride the BMW in the Superstock class, having taken a pair of podium finishes last year. Dunlop is currently on a run of five consecutive Superstock podiums, and following impressive pace in races across Ireland, he comes into TT 2026 riding a large wave of momentum.
Five straight Superstock podiums and counting - Dunlop’s momentum on the big BMW shows no signs of slowing.
That momentum is felt across all four classes at the TT. Over the past two events it’s not been a case of wondering whether Michael would win a race, but rather how many he’s going to win. It certainly won’t be easy for him this year, particularly with Peter Hickman’s Yamahas looking like the Sportbikes to beat, and Dean Harrison seemingly stepping up a gear in both the Supersport and Superbike categories.
The only thing that we can be certain of, however, is that Dunlop will be fighting at the front, and in every race he’ll only be satisfied if he’s climbing up to the top step of the podium.
