HODSON FASTEST IN THE OPENING QUALIFYING
The 2024 Manx Grand Prix burst into life on Sunday afternoon, and it was Rob Hodson who was quickest on the day, the Wigan rider lapping at 123.453mph on the Greenall Racing Kawasaki to top the RST Classic Superbike leaderboard.
Elsewhere, it was Dan Ingham (119.968mph, Mylchreests Group Senior) Andrea Majola (113.533mph, MGP Supporters Club Junior), Lee Johnston (114.181mph, PE Lightweight), John McGuinness (110.874mph, Classic Senior) and Dan Sayle (98.711mph, 2 Wheeling Classics Classic Junior) who were quickest in their respective classes.
With good dry conditions all around the course, more than 20 Newcomers had their speed-controlled lap before the Classic Superbike class got official practice underway at 2.08pm. Brian McCormack (Greenall Racing Kawasaki) had the honour of being first away followed by Michael Rutter (Bathams Ales Suzuki), Joe Yeardsley (Mistral Racing Kawasaki), Mike Browne (Key Racing Ducati) and the other Greenall machines of Derek Sheils and Hodson.
Michael Dunlop stopped after just a couple of miles on his Ducati and it was McCormack who completed the lap first at 118.571mph but that left him fifth on the leaderboard as it was Browne who was quickest at 121.545mph. That put him ahead of Hodson (121.512 mph), Sheils (120.383mph) and David Johnson (118.936mph) with Ian Hutchinson (118.101mph) slotting into sixth but the red flag came out shortly afterwards after Jamie Williams came off at Kate’s Cottage, the Manxman reported to be conscious with shoulder and hip injuries.
After a delay of just over 40 minutes, the session resumed at 3.20pm but it was the Junior, Lightweight, Classic Senior and Classic Junior classes that took to the Mountain Course this time. John McGuinness (Winfield Paton), Jamie Coward (Craven Manx Norton), Johnson (Craven Matchless) and Will Loder (MRE Seeley) led the field away on their Classic Senior mounts with Dunlop out on his Lightweight RS250 Honda and Italians Andrea Majola and Maurizio Bottalico astride their Junior machines.
It was Yeardsley (Flitwick Motorcycles Royal Enfield) who was quickest in the Classic Senior class at 106.369mph which put him ahead of the Beugger Paton of Shaun Anderson (105.999mph), Alan Oversby on the Ruthless Racing Honda (104.753mph), Coward (104.201mph), McGuinness (102.832mph), Adam McLean on the second Royal Enfield (98.668mph) and Loder (98.654mph). Meanwhile, Dan Sayle was fastest in the Classic Junior class, his lap of 98.711mph putting him ahead of Nigel Moore (96.426mph).
Majola’s lap of 112.088mph put him at the top of the Junior leaderboard from Bottalico (111.228mph) and Ingham (110.912mph) whilst it was Browne who was quickest in the Lightweights, his speed of 112.410mph putting him ahead of Stuart Hall (111.316mph) and Johnston (108.732mph). Paul Cassidy was the quickest 400cc rider at 107.379mph.
As expected, speeds were quicker on the second lap, McGuinness going quickest in the Classic Senior class at 110.874mph with Yeardsley (109.119mph) and Coward (106.213mph) upping their pace too. It was a similar story in the Junior class with Majola (112.928mph) and Alex Sinclair (112.018mph) both improving, but they were both upstaged by Ingham who moved to the top of the leaderboard with a lap of 113.502mph before Majola responded on his third lap.
Johnston, back on the Mountain Course for the first time in two years, improved his speed to 114.181mph on his 250cc Honda which saw him overhaul Ian Lougher (113.882), Browne and Hall in the Lightweight class. Stefano Bonetti lapped at 107.983mph which put him just ahead of Cassidy’s earlier lap in the 400’s.
At 4.30pm, the Classic Superbike and Senior machines resumed their session, and it was Hodson who quickest on the opening lap and, indeed, the session with a speed of 123.453mph. that saw him edge out Browne (123.387mph). Dominic Herbertson moved into third on the leaderboard at 122.907mph with Sheils (121.830mph) and Rutter (121.647mph) next quickest with Julian Trummer and Craig Neve also above 121mph.
Ingham (119.9mph) was quickest in the Senior, but the final session was ended early due to a Red Flag. The session wasn’t restarted thus bringing an end to the opening day of the 2024 Manx Grand Prix.
