Experienced road racer Ian Lougher scored a superb fourth place in the 2005
Isle of Man TT this afternoon. The six-lap Duke TT Superbike race should
have taken place yesterday, but was cancelled following another day of
unpredictable weather conditions.
Team DMRR Honda Racing's Lougher has contested the ultra-competitive event
for more than 20 years and used his vast knowledge of the demanding
37.75-mile mountain course to his advantage. Despite limited testing time on
the Pirelli-shod Team DMRR Honda Racing CBR1000RR Fireblade, the County
Down-based rider showed good form and completed race distance in 1:51:42.70
(121.59mph). His time at the chequered flag was just two minutes behind
victor John McGuinness.
Earlier this week, 38-year-old Lougher posted some encouraging lap times
aboard the machine in preparation for the highly anticipated opening
Superbike race. During Tuesday's practice session, he had significantly
improved his best time and felt comfortable with the machine's set-up. His
result today proves the capabilities of the road-going Fireblade.
A positive start to the gruelling 226.5-mile race enabled Lougher's
team-mate Richard Britton to move quickly into second place behind
McGuinness. The Enniskillen-based rider managed to hold this position for
two laps, but was forced into third by Ulsterman Adrian Archibald on lap
three.
Thirty-four-year-old Britton later retired at Alpine Cottage on the fourth
lap, following technical problems with the Team DMRR Honda Racing Fireblade.
Ian Lougher: "I'm really pleased to have finished in fourth position - it's
a great result for Team DMRR Honda Racing. We haven't had a lot of testing
time on the CBR1000RR Fireblade, but it just goes to show how capable the
machine is. I'm confident of another great finish in Friday's Superbike
race."
Richard Britton: "I'm disappointed not to have completed race distance
today - but it can't be helped. We were right up there in second position
for a couple of laps, and I think we could have finished on the podium. It's
unfortunate for the team, but there's always the next race to look forward
to."
Duke TT Superbike race result;
- 1. J. McGuinness (Yamaha) 1:49:25.74
- 2. A. Archibald (Suzuki) 1:50:02.04
- 3. M. Finnegan (Honda) 1:51:18.16
- 4. I. Lougher (Team DMRR Honda Racing) 1:51:42.70
- 5. R. Porter (Yamaha) 1:52:09.16
- 6. G. Martin (Suzuki) 1:52:22.87
- 7. J. Griffiths (Yamaha) 1:52:26.88
- 8. C. Heath (Honda) 1:53:05.38
- 9. J. Maeda (Honda) 1:53:55.19
- 10. I. Armstrong (Yamaha) 1:55:03.55
