Isle of Man TT 2023 | Race weekend results

More unofficial lap records were set as practice progressed, including the Birchall brothers beating their own sidecar record, narrowly missing the 120mph mark. The most eye-opening of all, though, was Michael Dunlop’s 135mph lap on the final night of practice aboard his Superbike, making him the fastest ever man to lap the TT course.

Racing began on Friday 2nd June, with the first Supersport and Sidecar TTs taking centre stage instead of the traditional curtain-raising Superbike challenge. So, without further ado, let’s take you through the results of the 2023 Isle of Man TT Races.

Supersport TT Race 1

The Supersport races were Dunlop territory in 2022, and it looked to be business as usual right from the off in 2023. Dunlop was never really challenged at the front and just managed the gap to secure his 22nd TT victory. Meanwhile, the battle for the remaining podium places was nip and tuck right down to the very end. 

Dean Harrison held almost four seconds over Peter Hickman at the start of the fourth and final lap, and a gutsy ride from the Trooper Triumph rider overhauled Harrison, beating the Yamaha by just three-tenths of a second at the finish line. Jamie Coward and Davey Todd rounded out the top five, and while there were less than three seconds between the two, they were some 41 seconds adrift of the podium finishers.

1st – Michael Dunlop

2nd – Peter Hickman +12.3

3rd – Dean Harrison +0.3

Supersport TT Race 2

Given his performances earlier in the week, the question had now turned to just how many could Michael Dunlop win this year. As was to be expected, Dunlop leapt out of the gate and by the pitstops at the end of lap two had pulled out a near-12-second lead on Peter Hickman in third.

Seeing that Hickman had reeled the gap into just eight seconds at the end of lap three, Dunlop turned up the heat and set about smashing his own lap record in the Supersport class. The Ballymoney man said after the race that he knew a 130mph was possible on the Honda, and he duly delivered, in his words, ‘for the craic’. Hickman, who eased off once he saw Dunlop pulling back ahead, came home for another second place, as Dean Harrison rounded out the podium once again.

1st – Michael Dunlop

2nd – Peter Hickman +9.6

3rd – Dean Harrison +24.8

Sidecar TT 1

This time last year the Sidecars endured a tough practice week, barely managing to get any laps as a result of weather and accident-related stoppages. This year, however, almost every outfit had managed more laps in practice than they had across the entire 2022 fortnight. Heading into the first race of the week, all eyes were on Ben and Tom Birchall and whether the 120mph lap they’d been chasing since 2019 was on the cards.

A three-second gap at the end of the first lap between the Birchalls and Pete Founds and Jevan Walmsley suggested a close race might be on the cards, but the number one outfit had other ideas. Turning up the wick they pulled out a mighty 13 seconds on the second of three laps and, more importantly, crossed the line with a lap speed of 120.357mph. The scenes in the winners' enclosure showed just how much that record meant to the brothers, who celebrated at length with their families.

Founds would come home second, some 24 seconds back, and there would then be more than three minutes to wait for John Holden and Maxime Vasseur to finish a popular third and complete the podium. The Crowe brothers, who had been much fancied in the build-up to the TT but suffered an accident on the opening night of practice, retired on lap two.

1st – Ben Birchall & Tom Birchall

2nd – Pete Founds & Jevan Walmsley +24.0

3rd – John Holden & Maxime Vasseur +3:15.4

Sidecar TT 2

Having already set the coveted 120mph lap in the first Sidecar TT, the pressure was off the Birchall brothers who were now aiming to join Mike Hailwood on 14 TT wins. While they managed to better their own time from Friday, pushing the lap record up to 120.645mph, they were pushed right to the bitter end on this occasion.

Pete Founds and Jevan Walmsley managed to stay within 10 seconds of the Birchalls this time, and also joined the 120mph on the final lap of the Sidecar’s centenary TT. The Crowe brothers, still not operating at the pace they knew they could, came home to finish an emotional third.

1st – Ben Birchall & Tom Birchall

2nd – Pete Founds & Jevan Walmsley +9.1

3rd – Ryan Crowe & Callum Crowe + 47.6

Superbike TT

Everyone expected Peter Hickman to come out fighting and regain his crown as the man to beat on the ‘big bikes’ at the Isle of Man, but it was clear that the British Superbike regular was not quite his regular cool, calm and collected self when riding his Superbike. 

Once the race got underway, it was almost a carbon copy of the first Supersport TT. Dunlop ran off into the distance, easily claiming his 23rd TT win, putting him level with John McGuinness and second in the all-time standings, just three behind his uncle Joey. Meanwhile, Harrison held second up until the sixth and final lap, before, again, Hickman overhauled him to secure the runner’s up spot. As if he was trying to prove a point, Hickman’s final lap set a lap record for the Superbike TT, narrowly missing out on a new outright lap record. 

Davey Todd seemed to be secure in fourth at the first round of pitstops, but would have to retire his Padgetts Honda just one lap later. That meant that two minutes now separated the podium finishers from the rest of the field. James Hillier came home fourth, with Jamie Coward rounding out the top five and John McGuinness, who rejoined the 130mph club for the first time in years, finishing an impressive sixth.

1st – Michael Dunlop

2nd – Peter Hickman +8.2

3rd – Dean Harrison +9.8

Superstock TT Race 1

Low cloud on the Mountain caused a lengthy delay to the third race day, but when racing did finally get going, it was the FHO Racing BMW of Peter Hickman that got the jump on the rest of the field. Although Dunlop was within three seconds of Hickman at the end of the first lap, that gap would extend by 12 seconds by the time they were starting their third and final tour.

Hickman’s dominance in this race was reminiscent of his performances in 2022, and still managed to click a 134mph final lap despite watching the helicopter across the mountain and pulling wheelies in the closing sectors. Harrison came home in a lonely third, with Davey Todd in fourth. A thrilling battle for fifth saw the Yamaha of James Hillier narrowly beat Jamie Coward on the Honda.

1st – Peter Hickman

2nd – Michael Dunlop +23.1

3rd – Dean Harrison +14.8

Superstock TT Race 2

The Superstock class had been the only two-wheeled category at TT 2023 to not be dominated by Ballymoney’s Michael Dunlop. Early splits suggested Dunlop was going to be able to challenge Hickman to complete a victory in every class across the fortnight, but the ‘world’s fastest road racer’ had other ideas entering the final lap.

Hickman managed to pull out twelve seconds on the chasing Dunlop on the final tour, smashing not only the Superstock lap record but the outright lap record in the process. Hickman’s lap speed of 136.358mph on a Stock bike was nothing short of mind-blowing as he put himself on a par with TT legends Steve Hislop and Phil McCallen on 11 wins.

Harrison once again completed the podium, while the returning Conor Cummins finished fourth, having missed the opening two race days through illness. Completing a positive race for the FHO Racing squad, Josh Brookes beat his own personal best lap record to complete the top five.

1st – Peter Hickman

2nd – Michael Dunlop +17.1

3rd – Dean Harrison +40.8

Supertwin TT Race 1

Pushed back to an evening race as a result of the earlier weather delays, the first Supertwin encounter was more than worth the wait and absolutely fitting of its prime-time slot. On paper, it may look like a rather drab race for the win, as Dunlop charged away for his third win of the week, but the battle behind was jaw-dropping.

Jamie Coward, one of the pre-race favourites on Supertwin machinery, held second at the end of the first lap, narrowly ahead of Ireland’s Mike Browne aboard one of the ear-shattering Patons. Browne worked his way past Coward by the time they’d reached the Bungalow on the second lap and managed to keep the Kawasaki at bay for the remainder of the race. The result gave Browne his first-ever visit to the Isle of Man TT podium,

Peter Hickman, who had looked in contention for a podium aboard his own Yamaha, struggled in the pits and found himself battling with his FHO stablemate Josh Brookes for fourth. Brookes, who had only put together a deal to replace the injured Gary Johnson aboard the Dafabet Racing Kawasaki on the eve of practice week was hugely impressive, considering he’d never ridden the bike before, nor had he competed at the TT since 2018.

1st – Michael Dunlop

2nd – Mike Brown +26.7

3rd – Jamie Coward +2.2

Supertwin TT Race 2

A buzz of anticipation befell the Isle of Man ahead of the penultimate race of the week. No one had been able to come close to Michael Dunlop in the Supertwin category and it seemed almost a given that he would equal Uncle Joey’s 26-win record at the end of the three-lap dash. It wasn’t to be, though, as a mechanical issue ended his race on the run-up to Hailwood’s Height on the very first lap.

Mike Browne, who had inherited the lead from Dunlop, suffered heartbreak of his own, retiring from the lead with clutch issues at the end of lap two while holding a commanding lead and on his way to a first TT win. Peter Hickman would be the eventual winner, followed by two first-time podium finishers, Pierre-Yves Bian and Josh Brookes. Brookes could have finished second had he not lost 30 seconds in the pits with an electrical issue. 

The 2023 event saw two races for Supertwins for the first time at the TT, and could perhaps have been a cause for the rate of attrition that not only saw Dunlop and Browne drop out but also took almost certain podiums out of the grasps of Jamie Coward and Dominic Herbertson.

1st – Peter Hickman

2nd – Pierre-Yves Bian +47.7

3rd – Josh Brookes +2.0

Senior TT

Rounding out a near-perfect week of racing, the pre-race chatter wasn’t a case of “will they break any records?”, but rather “how many records will they break today?”. Bathed under beautiful Manx sunlight, it was the expected trio duking it out for the podium placings across the 226-mile marathon.

Peter Hickman would get the better of his competitors, retaining his Senior crown from 2022, but it was a much closer affair on this occasion. Dean Harrison kept Hickman honest in the early laps, but the FHO Racing BMW rider managed to pull out a 20-second margin by the end of the six laps of the Mountain. Michael Dunlop came home in third, a further 20 seconds behind Harrison, rounding out a hugely successful week which saw Dunlop and Hickman end tied on four wins apiece.

Conor Cummins came home fourth, some 90 seconds off the pace of the top three, further showing just how far ahead of the chasing pack they are. Josh Brookes rounded out a week of improved performances, coming fifth at the line.

1st – Peter Hickman

2nd – Dean Harrison +19.9

3rd – Michael Dunlop +20.4