Isle of Man TT: What did qualifying tell us about who could win the race?

Honda Racing’s Dean Harrison dominated qualifying for the Superbike, Superstock and Senior races, immediately throwing down the gauntlet to his rivals in first qualifying and steadily improving his lap times throughout the week.

The Yorkshire rider posted a lap speed of 133.925mph on his Honda Fireblade Superbike to record the fastest circuit of the mountain course in an opening qualifying session, going slightly slower on his first standing start lap.

The 37-year-old got the better of him in cool and windy conditions on Friday, clocking 134.877mph, firmly establishing him as a firm pre-race favorite for the Superbike and Senior races.

Peter Hickman was second fastest on the qualifying leaderboard in his 8TEN Racing BMW with a 132.712 and could be Harrison’s main challenger if the continuing problems he is experiencing with nerve damage in his shoulder from a practice crash at last year’s meeting do not prove too prohibitive.

Australian Josh Brookes is the fifth fastest rider around the circuit and looks well in the mix for a podium finish after his third fastest ride in qualifying this year on his DAO Racing Honda.

The two-time British Superbike champion finished second in the senior race in 2024 so will be looking to emulate that feat in some ‘big bike’ outings.

After much speculation as to what equipment he would campaign, Michael Dunlop decided to ride a Hawk Racing Honda in the Superbike and despite some problems in practice, the record 33-time winner grew faster as the week progressed and was never to be discounted for victory.

Harrison was a double winner in the Superstock category 12 months ago and practice form suggests he is in a strong position to add to his tally of five career wins in that class.

Although his best lap time was almost 16 seconds faster than his nearest rival in Superbike qualifying, the Isle of Man-based rider currently has a gap of around 27 seconds to BMW-mounted Dunlop, who was second in the qualifying standings in Superstocks.

Harrison’s timesheet top speed was 135.484 and he would take all the catching for the two scheduled three-lappers in that class.

Brooks was again good with third fastest time, with many riders behind him who were able to compete for rostrum places.

These include Ian Hutchinson, Nathan Harrison, Jamie Coward, Mike Brown, David Johnson, Paul Jordan, Dominic Herbertson and 23-time winner John McGuinness, still competing 30 years after his TT debut.