By Phil Wain
June 5 2006

John McGuinness put in a scorching ride in Saturday’s TT Superbike race to win his ninth TT, setting new lap and race records along the way. The Morecambe rider broke his own record on the first and second laps for a new high of 127.933mph, and eventually ran out a clear winner by over 39 seconds. It was a textbook performance by the HM Plant Honda rider and, just as he has done in previous years, he left his rivals trailing in his wake on the opening lap. At the first check point at Glen Helen, John was the joint leader along with Ian Hutchinson, but upon seeing his first signal he pushed harder and by the time the first lap had been completed his lead was up to an ominous twelve seconds.

A standing start lap of 127.835mph broke not only the lap record but also the opposition, and the trend continued over the second lap. John was extending his lead between each commentary point, and another lap record of 127.933mph gave him a 23 second lead as he entered the pits to refuel at the end of the second lap.

Controlling the race from the front, John was leading on the road and he used it to his full advantage, whilst Ian Lougher and Ian Hutchinson battled over second spot. His fourth lap was twelve seconds quicker than anyone else and, with the second pit stop going perfectly, his lead grew even bigger. The final two laps went without any problems, and John brought the CBR1000RR Honda FireBlade home in a time of 1h 48m 52.06s, for a new race record of 124.764mph.

After the race, a jubilant John said:
“What a fantastic race. Everything went perfectly and I’m over the moon with the win. The weather was perfect, and there was a big crowd out on the course today, so it was a brilliant day for racing at the Isle of Man. The Honda never missed a beat, and my team did a fantastic job in making sure everything was prepared and the pit stops went faultlessly. My first signal said ‘P1 +0.8’ so I knew it was close, but I dug deep on that first lap and pulled out a good lead. I knew that I was strong over the mountain, and the Dunlop tyres were working brilliantly, so it was a case of getting my head down from the start.

“There’s no time to mess around, so the plan was go hard on the first couple of laps and hopefully open up a bit of a lead, which is exactly what happened. Conditions were perfect. There was a bit of a breeze over the mountain to cool you down, and there weren’t many flies, so visibility was good and it made for a thoroughly enjoyable ride. It was a shame Guy and the two TAS boys went out so early, so I’m sure there’ll be even more determined for the remaining races. The crowd was the biggest I’ve seen in years, and they were all waving, so thanks to them and to all the marshals round the course - who did a great job. Like I said, I’m delighted with the win, and it was an absolute pleasure riding today.”

There’s little respite for John, with the four-lap Superstock race taking place at 10:45am on Monday.