2022 Manx Grand Prix Thursday Qualifying
By Phil Wain
The penultimate qualifying session for this year’s Manx Grand Prix took place with perfect conditions all around the Mountain Course and it was again Team Classic Suzuki’s Michael Dunlop who was quickest on the night with a lap of 124.676mph in the Classic Superbike class.
It was close session with just 3.5 seconds covering Dunlop, David Johnson, Craig Neve and Rob Hodson, all four above 124mph, whilst James Hind (117.488mph) set the fastest lap of the week in the Lightweight class. Stephen Smith (119.442mph) was again quickest in the Senior category with Victor Lopez Santos (114.894mph) and Lee Johnston (108.410mph) topping the Junior and Classic Senior leaderboards.
A short, ten-minute delay meant it was a 6.30pm start for the Classic Superbike/Senior session and Dunlop (Team Classic XR69 Suzuki) and Michael Rutter (Bathams Ales Suzuki) were first away followed by Brian McCormack (Greenall Racing Kawasaki), Phil Crowe (Team Classic Suzuki), Ryan Kneen (Herheim Racing Kawasaki), the Alasdair Cowan Racing Kawasaki pairing of David Johnson and Craig Neve and Dominic Herbertson (Bob Henderson Racing Kawasaki).
Meanwhile, in the Senior class, it was Victor Lopez Santos (Xecretia Road Racing Yamaha) who was first to leave the line followed by Jamie Williams (NCE Racing Honda), David McConnachy (Peter Dobson Racing Triumph) and Radley Hughes (RAF Motorsports Kawasaki).
Dunlop only got as far as Glen Vine before pulling off the course but on track, there was little to choose on the opening lap between Johnson (123.653mph) and Neve (123.519mph) with Nathan Harrison (122.911mph), Rob Hodson (122.703mph), Kneen (122.212,mph) and Herbertson (121.923mph) hot on their heels. Dunlop made it back to the pits and headed back out on his 750cc SRAD Suzuki, lapping at 122.167mph.
Just 1.2 seconds separated Johnson and Neve on the opening lap and it was a similar story on lap two, although Johnson was again the quicker at 124.504mph compared to Neve’s 124.275mph. Hodson (124.279mph) split the two team-mates with Kneen also increasing his pace to 123.611mph. Harrison slid off, uninjured, though at Quarter Bridge.
Lee Johnston (118.921) had an encouraging session on the Ashcourt Racing RC45 Honda but, once again, Dunlop had the final say and after switching back to the XR69 Suzuki, a lap of 124.676mph was 1.5s quicker than Johnson and sent him back to the top of the leaderboard, but Dunlop had gone quicker the day before with a 125.537 remaining the benchmark for the week so far.
In the Senior on Thursday, it was Smith who was again quickest on the opening lap at 119.442mph followed by McConnachy (117.942mph) and Lopez (117.160mph) but Williams was reported as having stopped at Cronk y Voddy.
Smith was on course to break the 120mph barrier on his second lap but ran out of fuel at Bedstead whilst Lopez Santos (117.685), Chris Cook (117.486) and Tom Robinson (116.850) all bettered their previous lap speeds. French newcomer Amalric Blanc was also going well at 113.429mph.
At 7.10pm, the Classic Senior, Junior and Lightweight machines were next to tackle the 37.73-mile circuit and in the latter, Mike Browne (Laylaw Racing Yamaha), who had dispensation to go out in the first session, lapped at an impressive 116.917mph which put him ahead of team-mate Ian Lougher (114.308mph), Hind (113.308mph) and Herbertson (112.931mph).
Lopez Santos (114.894mph) made the running in the Junior class from Francesco Curinga (113.955mph), Jamie Williams (112.838mph) and Ben Rea (112.122mph) whilst it was Hodson (107.517) who was quickest in the Classic Senior from Jamie Coward (106.825mph), Johnston (106.824), John McGuinness MBE (106.700mph) and James Hillier (106.489mph).
Hind (117.488mph), Herbertson (113.848mph) and Rhys Hardisty (111.160mph) posted their best Lightweight laps of the week on the second lap and the same occurred in the Classic Senior for Johnston (108.410mph), Herbertson (108.114mph) and Hillier (107.058mph) on their TX500 Yamaha’s but McGuinness retired at Quarter Bridge. Williams, meanwhile, closed the gap to Lopez in the Junior class with a lap of 114.575mph.
The Lightweight Manx Grand Prix kicks racing off on Friday before Classic Senior and Junior races on Saturday. The Senior and Superbike Manx Grand Prix events are slated for Monday.
MGP Classic Superbike Qualifying
Combined Times after Thursday sessions
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Time | Speed |
| 1 | Michael Dunlop | Suzuki T-Bike GSXR750 | 18m01.979 | 125.537 |
| 2 | David Johnson | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 18m10.949 | 124.504 |
| 3 | Rob Hodson | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 18m12.925 | 124.279 |
| 4 | Craig Neve | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 18m12.962 | 124.275 |
| 5 | Ryan Kneen | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 18m18.833 | 123.611 |
| 6 | Nathan Harrison | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 18m25.090 | 122.911 |
| 7 | Dominic Herbertson | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 18m34.051 | 121.923 |
| 8 | Brian McCormack | Kawasaki ZXR750 | 18m35.767 | 121.735 |
| 9 | Michael Rutter | Suzuki XR69 | 18m35.829 | 121.728 |
| 10 | Paul Jordan | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 18m37.351 | 121.563 |
| 11 | Michael Sweeney | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 18m41.228 | 121.142 |
| 12 | Julian Trummer | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 18m42.024 | 121.056 |
| 13 | Phillip Crowe | Suzuki XR69 | 18m44.508 | 120.789 |
| 14 | Lee Johnston | Honda RC45 | 19m02.172 | 118.921 |
| 15 | Paul Potchy Williams | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 19m06.880 | 118.433 |
| 16 | Michal Dokoupil | Suzuki GSXR750 | 19m09.085 | 118.205 |
| 17 | Shaun Anderson | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 19m12.754 | 117.829 |
| 18 | Barry Furber | Suzuki GSXR750 | 19m22.154 | 116.876 |
| 19 | Samuel West | Suzuki XR69 | 19m30.467 | 116.046 |
| 20 | Timothee Monot | Yamaha 750 | 19m32.925 | 115.803 |
| 21 | Michael Evans | Suzuki GSXR750 | 19m33.389 | 115.757 |
| 22 | Raul Torras Martinez | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 19m39.261 | 115.181 |
| 23 | Anthony Redmond | Suzuki GSXR750 | 19m44.242 | 114.696 |
| 24 | Richard Wilson | Norton RCW588 | 19m49.287 | 114.210 |
| 25 | Lancelot Unissart | Honda T-Bike RC30 | 19m56.922 | 113.481 |
| 26 | Stefano Bonetti | Suzuki GSXR 750 1992 | 20m04.262 | 112.789 |
| 27 | Jamie Cringle | suzuki GSXR 750 | 20m07.316 | 112.504 |
| 28 | Dave Hewson | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 20m07.978 | 112.442 |
| 29 | Daniel Ingham | Suzuki GSXR750 | 20m12.273 | 112.044 |
| 30 | Alan Oversby | Suzuki GSXR750 | 20m13.881 | 111.896 |
| 31 | Dennis Booth | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 20m14.291 | 111.858 |
| 32 | Mark Herbertson | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 20m14.852 | 111.806 |
| 33 | Michael Mace | Ducati 888 | 20m19.099 | 111.417 |
| 34 | Andrea Majola | Ducati 916 | 20m20.800 | 111.261 |
| 35 | Marc Colvin | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 20m22.234 | 111.131 |
| 36 | Robert Barber | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 20m27.319 | 110.671 |
| 37 | Pete Murray | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 20m36.044 | 109.889 |
| 38 | Radley Hughes | Kawasaki ZX-R7 | 20m54.829 | 108.244 |
| 39 | David Madsen-Mygdal | Honda RC30 | 21m03.029 | 107.541 |
| 40 | Wayne Bourgeais | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 21m23.064 | 105.862 |
| 41 | Paul Marley | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 21m32.589 | 105.082 |
| 42 | Hefyn Owen | Yamaha YZR750 | 21m34.278 | 104.945 |
| 43 | Andy Lovett | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 21m37.408 | 104.692 |
| 44 | Colin Croft | Suzuki GSXR750 | 21m46.845 | 103.936 |
| 45 | Richard Vuillermet | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 21m53.061 | 103.444 |
| 46 | Benjamin Plant | Suzuki GSXR750 | 22m10.838 | 102.062 |
| 47 | Rodger Wibberley | Suzuki GSXR750 | 22m16.850 | 101.603 |
| 48 | Keith Pringle* | Suzuki GSXR750 | 22m17.197 | 101.577 |
| 49 | Nigel Rea | Suzuki GSXR750 | 22m18.562 | 101.473 |
| 50 | Jamie O’Brien | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 22m42.440 | 99.695 |
| 51 | Mike Browne | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 34.129 | |
| 52 | Jamie Coward | Kawasaki ZX-R750 | 01h08:22.328 | 33.110 |
MGP Senior Qualification
Combined Times after Thursday sessions
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Time | Speed |
| 1 | Stephen Smith | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 18m52.313 | 119.956 |
| 2 | David McConnachy | Triumph Daytona 675R | 18m57.725 | 119.386 |
| 3 | Jamie Williams | Honda CBR600RR | 19m00.559 | 119.089 |
| 4 | Daniel Ingham | Yamaha R6 | 19m13.317 | 117.772 |
| 5 | Victor Lopez | Yamaha T-Bike R6 | 19m14.164 | 117.685 |
| 6 | Chris Cook | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 19m16.120 | 117.486 |
| 7 | Tom Robinson | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 19m22.415 | 116.850 |
| 8 | Andrew Fisher | Yamaha R6 | 19m31.170 | 115.976 |
| 9 | Samuel Mousley | Yamaha YZF R6 | 19m31.975 | 115.897 |
| 10 | Marc Colvin | Suzuki GSXR600 | 19m41.043 | 115.007 |
| 11 | Shaun Evans | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 19m42.367 | 114.878 |
| 12 | James Reveley | Yamaha R6 | 19m45.373 | 114.587 |
| 13 | Amalric Blanc* | Kawasaki ZX636R | 19m57.472 | 113.429 |
| 14 | Gaz Evans | Triumph ST675R | 19m59.416 | 113.245 |
| 15 | Paul Cassidy* | Yamaha R6 | 20m01.957 | 113.006 |
| 16 | Radley Hughes | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 20m03.258 | 112.884 |
| 17 | Jack Fowler | Triumph Daytona 675R | 20m03.701 | 112.842 |
| 18 | Dennis Booth | Honda CBR600RR | 20m06.509 | 112.579 |
| 19 | Kevin Barsby | TBC TBC | 20m07.973 | 112.443 |
| 20 | Michael Rees | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 20m08.427 | 112.401 |
| 21 | James Ford | Yamaha R6 | 20m09.422 | 112.308 |
| 22 | Dean Osborne | Honda CBR600RR | 20m10.576 | 112.201 |
| 23 | Michael Mace | Triumph Daytona 675R | 20m12.780 | 111.997 |
| 24 | Lancelot Unissart | Honda CBR600RR | 20m13.849 | 111.899 |
| 25 | Lewis Arrowsmith* | Honda CBR600RR | 20m15.715 | 111.727 |
| 26 | Stuart McCann | Triumph Daytona 675R | 20m16.051 | 111.696 |
| 27 | Jim Barnett | Suzuki GSXR600 | 20m16.922 | 111.616 |
| 28 | Tom Snow | Yamaha R6 | 20m24.105 | 110.961 |
| 29 | Liam Chawke | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 20m25.111 | 110.870 |
| 30 | Maurizio Bottalico* | Yamaha R6 | 20m29.289 | 110.493 |
| 31 | Andy Lovett | Honda CBR600RR | 20m33.548 | 110.112 |
| 32 | Colin Croft | Suzuki GSXR600 | 20m34.119 | 110.061 |
| 33 | Frankie Stennett* | Kawasaki ZX636R | 20m36.738 | 109.828 |
| 34 | David Brook | Yamaha R6 | 20:m7.720 | 109.740 |
| 35 | Rikki McGovern | Triumph Daytona 675R | 20m41.837 | 109.377 |
| 36 | Daniel Forbes* | Suzuki GSXR600 | 20m44.615 | 109.133 |
| 37 | Emmett Burke | Suzuki GSXR600 | 20m46.338 | 108.982 |
| 38 | Justin Collins | Yamaha R6 | 20m47.259 | 108.901 |
| 39 | Quentin Limousin | Suzuki GSXR600 | 20m49.506 | 108.705 |
| 40 | Don Gilbert | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 20m49.945 | 108.667 |
| 41 | Yann Galli* | Honda CBR600RR | 20m51.988 | 108.490 |
| 42 | Adam Bauer | Honda CBR600RR | 20m53.799 | 108.333 |
| 43 | Richard Vuillermet | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 20m54.220 | 108.297 |
| 44 | Paul Marley | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 20m57.625 | 108.004 |
| 45 | Leon Donaghy | Triumph Daytona 675R | 20m58.531 | 107.926 |
| 46 | Nigel Rea | Suzuki GSXR600 | 21m02.434 | 107.592 |
| 47 | Ross Orchard | Yamaha R6 | 21m05.633 | 107.320 |
| 48 | Peter Creer | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 21m06.487 | 107.248 |
| 49 | Kieran Brockie* | Yamaha R6 | 21m17.000 | 106.365 |
| 50 | Richard Duncan | Yamaha R6 | 21m19.406 | 106.165 |
| 51 | Victor Ortega | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 21m20.283 | 106.092 |
| 52 | Benjamin Plant | Kawasaki ZX-6R | 21m28.039 | 105.453 |
| 53 | Krystian Paluch | Honda CBR600RR | 22m29.900 | 100.621 |
MGP Lightweight Qualification
Combined Times after Thursday sessions
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Time | Speed |
| 1 | James Hind | Yamaha TZ250 | 19m16.105 | 117.488 |
| 2 | Mike Browne | Yamaha TZ250 | 19m21.743 | 116.917 |
| 3 | Ian Lougher | Yamaha TZ250 | 19m48.262 | 114.308 |
| 4 | Dominic Herbertson | Honda RS250 |
19m53.067 | 113.848 |
| 5 | Stuart Hall | Yamaha TZ250 | 20m00.891 | 113.106 |
| 6 | Michael Dunlop | Honda RS250 | 20m06.174 | 112.611 |
| 7 | Rhys Hardisty | Yamaha TZ250 | 20m21.917 | 111.160 |
| 8 | Chris Moore | Yamaha TZ250 | 20m30.350 | 110.398 |
| 9 | Dan Sayle | Honda RS250 | 20m32.075 | 110.243 |
| 9 | Phil Harvey | Honda RS250 | 21m11.929 | 106.789 |
| 10 | Andrew Jackson | Yamaha TZ250 | 21m13.812 | 106.631 |
| 11 | Gareth Arnold* | Yamaha TZ250 | 21m25.734 | 105.642 |
| 12 | Lancelot Unissart | Honda RS250 | 21m39.066 | 104.558 |
| 13 | Richard Wilson | KTM 250 | 21m45.773 | 104.021 |
| 14 | Tom Snow | Honda NSF250 | 21m52.421 | 103.494 |
| 15 | Adrian Morris | Yamaha TZ250 | 22m03.825 | 102.603 |
| 16 | Timothee Monot | Yamaha TZ250 | 22m04.913 | 102.518 |
| 17 | Simon Hunt | Yamaha TZ250 | 22m16.755 | 101.610 |
| 18 | Ian Stanford | Honda RS250 | 22m25.250 | 100.969 |
| 19 | Will Loder | Yamaha TZ250 | 22m27.434 | 100.805 |
| 20 | Richard Parker | Honda RS250 | 22m43.228 | 99.637 |
| 21 | Adrian Skaife | Honda NSF250 | 22m44.898 | 99.515 |
| 22 | David Glover | Yamaha TZ250 | 22m48.695 | 99.239 |
| 23 | James Chawke | Yamaha TZ250 | 23m00.256 | 98.408 |
MGP Junior Qualification
Combined Times after Thursday sessions
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Time | Speed |
| 1 | Victor Lopez | Aprilia RS660 | 19m42.205 | 114.894 |
| 2 | Jamie Williams | Kawasaki ER-6 | 19m45.497 | 114.575 |
| 3 | Francesco Curinga | Paton S1R | 19m51.943 | 113.955 |
| 4 | Marc Colvin | Kawasaki ER-6 | 20m01.660 | 113.034 |
| 5 | Andrea Majola | Paton S1R | 20m04.292 | 112.787 |
| 6 | Daniel Ingham | Aprilia RS660 | 20m10.132 | 112.242 |
| 7 | Ben Rea | Kawasaki ER-6 | 20m11.434 | 112.122 |
| 8 | Chris Moore | Kawasaki ER-6 | 20m22.969 | 111.064 |
| 9 | Jack Fowler | Kawasaki ER-6 | 20m23.113 | 111.051 |
| 10 | Martin Morris* | Aprilia RS660 | 20m39.717 | 109.564 |
| 11 | Paul Wardell | Kawasaki ER-6 | 20m39.857 | 109.551 |
| 12 | Eoin Ó Siochrú* | Kawasaki ER-6 | 20m53.760 | 108.337 |
| 13 | Mark Herbertson | Kawasaki ER-6 | 20m55.274 | 108.206 |
| 14 | Ivo Ladde | Kawasaki ER-6 | 20m57.460 | 108.018 |
| 15 | Michael Mace | Kawasaki ER-6 | 20m59.884 | 107.810 |
| 16 | Albert Walker* | Kawasaki ER-6 | 21m03.852 | 107.471 |
| 17 | Andrew Fisher | Kawasaki ER-6 | 21m10.650 | 106.896 |
| 18 | Steven Moody | Aprilia RS660 | 21m21.233 | 106.014 |
| 19 | Andy Whale* | Aprilia RS660 | 21m26.388 | 105.589 |
| 20 | Paul Marley | Kawasaki ER-6 | 21m28.494 | 105.416 |
| 21 | Rodger Wibberley | Suzuki SV650 | 21m28.904 | 105.383 |
| 22 | Liam Chawke | Kawasaki ER-6 | 21m29.521 | 105.332 |
| 23 | David Brook | Aprilia RS660 | 21m29.975 | 105.295 |
| 24 | Michael Gahan* | Aprilia RS660 | 21m32.046 | 105.126 |
| 25 | Darran Creer | Suzuki SV650 | 21m46.931 | 103.929 |
| 26 | Mark Jackson* | Suzuki SV650 | 21m52.089 | 103.520 |
| 27 | Richard Kay* | Aprilia RS660 | 21m55.534 | 103.249 |
| 28 | Leon Murphy | Kawasaki ER-6 | 22m09.793 | 102.142 |
| 29 | Ross Orchard | Kawasaki ER-6 | 22m12.810 | 101.911 |
| 30 | Stuart Clotworthy* | Kawasaki ER-6 | 22m26.084 | 100.906 |
| 31 | Quentin Limousin | Suzuki SV650 | 22m28.628 | 100.716 |
| 32 | Krystian Paluch | Aprilia RS660 | 22m51.596 | 99.029 |
| 33 | Yuri Barrigan | Kawasaki ER-6 | 23m14.089 | 97.431 |
| 34 | Richard Duncan | Kawasaki ER-6 | 23m22.998 | 96.813 |
MGP Senior Classic Qualification
Combined Times after Thursday sessions
| Pos | Rider | Bike | Time | Speed |
| 1 | John McGuinness | Paton – T-Bike A1-B22 | 20m38.400 | 109.680 |
| 2 | Lee Johnston | Yamaha TX-500 | 20m52.907 | 108.410 |
| 3 | Dominic Herbertson | Yamaha XS-500 | 20m56.343 | 108.114 |
| 4 | Stefano Bonetti | Paton A1-B22 | 20m59.152 | 107.873 |
| 5 | Rob Hodson | Honda CB500 | 21m03.314 | 107.517 |
| 6 | James Hillier | Yamaha 500 | 21m08.734 | 107.058 |
| 7 | Jamie Coward | Norton 500Manx | 21m11.496 | 106.825 |
| 8 | Mike Browne | Norton ES2 | 21m44.917 | 104.089 |
| 9 | Alan Oversby | Honda CB500 | 21m54.733 | 103.312 |
| 10 | Michael Russell | Norton 500Manx | 22m00.518 | 102.860 |
| 11 | Ian Lougher | MV Agusta 500 | 22m15.925 | 101.673 |
| 12 | Will Loder | Seeley G50 | 22m20.694 | 101.312 |
| 13 | Michael Sweeney | Honda CB500 | 22m28.768 | 100.705 |
| 14 | Mark Parrett | Norton 500Manx | 22m38.663 | 99.972 |
| 15 | John Leigh Pemberton | Norton 500Manx | 22m50.054 | 99.141 |
| 16 | Richard Bairstow | Paton A1-B22 | 22m54.042 | 98.853 |
| 17 | Hefyn Owen | Seeley G50 | 22m54.902 | 98.791 |
| 18 | Andy Hornby* | Honda CB500 | 23m00.972 | 98.357 |
| 19 | Ben Rea | Honda CB500 | 23m03.081 | 98.207 |
| 20 | Keith Clarke | Norton 500Manx | 23m14.692 | 97.389 |
| 21 | Nathan Harrison | Honda CB350 | 23m17.242 | 97.212 |
| 22 | Nigel Moore | Honda CB350 | 23m23.630 | 96.769 |
| 23 | Kelly Carruthers* | Honda-T Bike CB500 | 23m27.956 | 96.472 |
| 24 | David Madsen-Mygdal | Honda CB450 | 23m28.462 | 96.437 |
| 25 | Richard Parker | Honda CB350 | 23m49.884 | 94.992 |
| 26 | Colin Stockdale | Honda T-Bike CB500 | 24m08.830 | 93.750 |
| 27 | Phil Harvey | Honda CB500 | 24m11.283 | 93.592 |
| 28 | Leon Murphy | Honda CB350K4 | 24m24.846 | 92.725 |
| 29 | Maria Costello MBE | Honda CB350 | 24m37.015 | 91.961 |
| 30 | Lee Jennings | Norton 500Manx | 24m40.245 | 91.761 |
| 31 | Shelley Pike | BSA GoldStar | 24m56.563 | 90.760 |
| 32 | Jamie O’Brien | Seeley G50 | 24m58.262 | 90.657 |
| 33 | Jeff Smith | Matchless G50 | 25m05.644 | 90.213 |
| 34 | Richard Wilson | DKW 350 | 25m26.913 | 88.956 |
| 35 | Adrian Skaife | Aermacchi 350 | 25m27.754 | 88.907 |
| 36 | Geoffrey Bates | Honda CB350 | 26m17.177 | 86.121 |
| 37 | Garth Woods | Honda CB350 | 27m04.163 | 83.630 |
| 38 | Michael Moreton | T-Bike 2 CB350 | 27m39.576 | 81.845 |
