Lintin makes his mark at TT2012

Lincolnshire’s Ivan Lintin made a more than favourable impression at the 2012 Isle of Man TT road races after some stunning performances during race week. Indeed, with two top twelve finishes, three silver replicas and a first ever 120mph+ lap, it was difficult to identify what the main highlight of the week was for the Bardney rider. Seventh in the Lightweight TT gave him his best finish but 10th in the highly competitive Supersport 600cc was, arguably, a more satisfying result whilst he also finished 7th overall in the TT Privateers Championship despite only his two Supersport finishes counting.

"I decided to concentrate on the smaller capacity races again at this year’s TT and its really paid dividends," said Lintin. "I wanted to make a bit of an impression this year so to get two top ten finishes, three silver replicas and a first ever 120mph+ lap is absolutely brilliant – I’m over the moon with how it all went. Switching to Kawasaki machinery has given me a boost as the bikes had better speed and handled better than what I'd previously ridden at the TT and that, together with my increased circuit knowledge, enabled me to push on for some decent positions.”

After posting the 7th and 13th fastest times in practice for the Lightweight and Supersport races respectively, hopes were high going into the three races on the R&D Sheet Metal ER6 and ZX-6R Kawasaki’s respectively and his superb form continued in the first 4-lap Supersport event. With an opening lap of 120.468mph, his first ever 120mph+ lap of the Mountain Course, he lay in 14th place whilst the next two laps saw him move up a place each time. On the fourth and final lap, he climbed up to a brilliant 10th place, to finish only a few seconds behind multiple race winner Ian Hutchinson and also be the third Kawasaki rider to finish.

It gave him his first ever top ten result and his first silver replica and two days later, he was back out on the Supersport machine. With more 120mph+ laps, Ivan again featured heavily and, posting his best ever lap of the demanding 37.73-mile circuit at 120.643mph, he took 14th place at the end of the four laps for his second successive silver replica.

However, the 27-year old saved the best until last with a stunning performance in the re-introduced 3-lap Lightweight TT. Riding the ER6 Kawasaki that has served him so well at Oliver’s Mount, Scarborough, Ivan slotted into 7th place after the opening lap but with riders opting for different pit stop strategies, he moved up to 4th at the end of lap two after lapping at 113.234mph, He then pitted and with everyone now having refuelled, he was lying in seventh once more, where he duly finished for his second top ten finish of the week and third silver replica from as many races.

"In the first Supersport race, I had no idea what position I was in, I just got my head down for 4 laps! I caught a few people on the road and the new qualifying procedure certainly helped me as I didn't have too many people to pass. I caught Dan Cooper and knew from his lap times in practice I must have been going fairly well so 10th, against all the top class opposition was a phenomenal result for me. The second Supersport race also went well but I had a slow pit stop, which slowed me down a bit and I then got caught up in a battle on the road with Olie Linsdell. It probably slowed us both down but I did my fastest lap of the fortnight on the last lap and was pleased to get another silver replica."

"Riding the Supertwin bike is a bit like riding a moped to me as they do what you want them to do but I was a bit too cautious on the opening lap, like a few other riders were, and lost a bit of time. When Russ Mountford came flying by, it gave me a wake up call and I ended up sticking with him for the rest of the race. At the pit stop, I had a look at the scoreboard and could see he was in 4th so knew I couldn't have been too further back as there was only the ten seconds starting difference between us. We had a bit of a battle but I didn't want to slow him up and mess his race up so I followed him round for the last lap and to end the week with 7th was just brilliant. I ran over the drainage cover at Graham Memorial on the final lap so told myself to just keep it going for the last few miles but, aside from that, I had no moments at all during the fortnight. I only had one mechanical problem too, which came in the very first session, and as I do all the work on my bikes, that's something I'm very proud of. I'd like to think I've shown what I'm capable of at the TT this year so it will be nice to return next year even stronger than ever."

Ivan’s next meeting will see him return to Oliver's Mount Scarborough for the Barry Sheene Festival (June 24) before returning to the Isle of Man for his debut at the Southern 100 road races. Held on the 4.25-mile Billown circuit, near Castletown, the meeting takes place from July 9-12.



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Farquhar ends TT with brilliant Lightweight race win


Ryan Farquhar completed his 2012 Isle of Man TT campaign with a brilliant victory in the re-introduced Lightweight TT race on Saturday. Having already taken third in the Superstock and second Supersport races, the KMR Kawasaki rider overcame a strong challenge from James Hillier and, having led on the first lap, a difference in pit stop strategies meant that he had to wait until the start of the third lap before re-taking the lead. His eventual winning margin though was almost 30 seconds as he swept to the third TT win of his career.

Adverse weather conditions on the Island meant that the race was postponed from Friday and also delayed heavily on Saturday but it eventually got underway at 6.25pm and over the full 3-lap distance. The gap between Ryan and Hillier at Glen Helen, 9 miles into the race, was just two seconds but Ryan continually extended his lead and with an opening lap of 115.088mph, he led the race by 14.11s. However, he opted to pit for fuel at the end of the lap whilst Hillier went stright through and that meant positions changed. Indeed, Hillier now led by over 20 seconds although this would probably be not enough of a cushion when it was his turn to pit. Ryan made sure it was immaterial though as he again reeled in his younger rival over the course of the lap and the deficit was down to just 6.76s as Hillier refuelled.

Through Glen Helen on the third lap, the race finally settled down again and it meant that Ryan was leading James by 28 seconds whilst fellow KMR Kawasaki rider Michael Rutter was up to third. Positions remained the same for the remainder of the lap and Ryan came home 28.99s clear of Hillier with Rutter setting the fastest lap of the race, 115.554mph, to take third. It was Ryan's first TT win since 2005, his third in total and also his 13th TT podium.

There was also a brilliant end to the week for Jamie Hamilton as he finished in a superb 10th place, to win his first silver replica. He also lapped at 112.149mph and the result earned him the coveted Newcomers Trophy.

Speaking after the race, a delighted Ryan said: “I’ve worked so hard for this and am absolutely over the moon to have won the race. I was pretty nervous before the race as a lot of people were saying I was the clear favourite whilst I was also putting myself under a fair bit of pressure so to actually get the win is superb. Conditions weren’t too bad and I expected it to be worse than what it was so I took it steady to begin with, sussed out where the damp conditions were and then rode as fast and as steady as I could. The bike never missed a beat and once I could see James in the distance, I knew I was catching him up ontime. The strategy went like a dream and the whole race went like clockwork. I’ve tried to push the class as much as I could and whilst everyone said I was the favourite, it’s never as simple as that. There’s always pressure so to be sitting here with a 1-3 for the team is unreal. I did a lot of work on James’ bike so I’ll take some credit for that as well!”

"It was also very pleasing to see Jamie finish his TT week on a high. A few silly little problems have prevented him getting a finish so to come 10th and win the Newcomers Trophy is a brilliant end to his week. He's ridden very well and enjoyed it immensely, which is exactly what we all wanted so it bodes well for the years ahead. I'd also like to say a big thank you to Kawasaki who continue to be 100% behind me and also to all the team sponsors who's support is invaluable - if it wasn't for them, we wouldn't be here today. It was a shame I struggled with the Superbike and couldn't get it to handle but, overall, all the other races have gone well and it's been a good 2012 TT for me."

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Maxton Dominate Lightweight TT

Maxton suspended Kawasaki ER650 Supertwins dominated the Isle of Man TT lightweight race with the first 10 riders all using Maxton products. The first 5 riders all used GP10 rear shock absorbers. In fact the only rider not using a GP10 rear shock in the top ten was William Dunlop.

Ryan Farquhar won the race by 29 seconds with a fastest lap of 115.186mph, James Hillier was second and Michael Rutter was third. Michael Rutter also set a new lap record of 115.554mph. Cameron Donald was fourth aboard his DP Cold Planning ER6 also breaking the 115mph lap barrier. A special mention must also go to Russ Mountford who finished 5th aboard his Northpoint ER6, this is only Russ' third TT and also Jamie Hamilton who finished 10th aboard his KMR Kawasaki ER6. This is Jamie's first TT and to get a top ten finish and lap above 112mph is great achievement.





1st Ryan Farquhar (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
2nd James Hillier (Maxton GP10 rear damper)
3rd Michael Rutter (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
4th Cameron Donald (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
5th Russ Mountford (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
6th William Dunlop (Maxton GP20 forks)
7th Ivan Lintin (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
8th Ian Lougher (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
9th Ollie Linsdell (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
10th Jamie Hamilton (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
11th Dave Moffitt  
12th Dean Harrison (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
13th Roger Maher (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
14th John Burrows (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
15th Michael Dunlop (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
16th Paul Shoesmith (GP10 rear damper)
17th Steve Mercer (GP10 rear damper)
18th Ben Wylie  
19th Rob Barber (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)
20th John Barton (Maxton GP20 forks and GP10 rear damper)


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Fantastic Farquhar notches up another TT podium

Ryan Farquhar took his second successive podium finish at the 2012 Isle of Man TT races on Wednesday when he finished in a fantastic third place in the 4-lap Supersport race. The KMR Kawasaki rider had a race long battle with the Padgetts Honda duo of Bruce Anstey and John McGuinness and it was Ryan who prevailed with his margin over Anstey just 0.01s after 150 miles of hard racing over the Mountain Course.

Having been scheduled to get underway at 10.45am, weather problems resulted in a number of changes to the day's programme and it was 6.25pm when the 4-lap race finally started but when it did, the Island was blessed with clear blue skies and warm sunshine although a number of damp patches did remain. Starting at number two again, a solid first lap of 122.049mph placed Ryan in fifth place but with a quicker lap of 124.356mph second time around, he closed to within three seconds of fourth placed John McGuinness. On the third lap, Ryan was overtaken on the road by Cameron Donald and the duo then caught McGuinness, and such was their pace, Ryan was now elevated to third.

The trio circulated in close formation for the final 37.73-miles but Ryan had to race hard right up until the very end as there was never more than a second between him and new fourth placed rider Bruce Anstey. Ryan overtook Donald on the road, making a final charge to the chequered flag and with his fastest ever lap on a 600cc machine at the TT - 124.928mph - he held on to his podium place, his 12th at the TT in total.

Speaking later, a delighted Ryan said; "I certainly wasn't expecting a podium in the Supersport class at this year's TT so be sitting here now in third place is absolutely brilliant. The race was going well and I would certainly have been happy with fifth but I could see from my signals that it was close between Bruce, John and myself so I kept pushing as hard as I could. When Cameron came past, I got into his slipstream and it towed me along a fair bit. I was having to take some wider, sweeping lines just to stay with him but it was great fun and Cameron never put a wheel wrong - he was as safe as houses and I could have ridden with him like that all day. Towards the end of the final lap, I could see how close it was for the final podium spot so I got by him and just rode as hard as I could over the final few miles. One hundredth of a second was ridiculously close but I'm delighted that it went in my favour on this occasion. I've got two more races to go so let's hope the week ends on a high note."

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No joy for Reeves in opening Sidecar TT race



Tim Reeves' hopes of taking victory in Saturday's F2 Sidecar TT race were dashed when mechanical problems forced him out on the opening lap. After setting the second fastest lap of practice of 112.808mph, with new passenger Dan Sayle, hopes were high going into the three-lap race and although they were lying in third at the first timing point, their race was soon over and they were forced to retire.

Practice week had started steadily for Tim and Dipash Chauhan with a lap of 110.748mph during Monday night's practice session but Dips was later forced to admit defeat in his battle to return to competitive racing at the TT after sustaining a broken leg in a short circuit crash in May 2011. As a result, Tim drafted in 7-times TT winner Dan Sayle who, despite contesting the solo races, agreed to come out of sidecar retirement to join Team NCR/Dave Hudspeth Carpets. The partnership immediately gelled and the duo posted a lap of 112.808mph during Tuesday evening's session, which turned out to be the second fastest of the week behind Dave Molyneux/Patrick Farrance. However, a breakdown during Friday's final practice session wasn't ideal preparation and left the team with work to do.

Great work by the team saw the LCR Honda ready in time for the race and as the outfits passed through Glen Helen for the first time, Tim and Dan were lying in third place, 2.5s down on Molyneux/Farrance and 1s down on Ben and Tom Birchall. However, when they went through the Sulby speed trap at 54.8mph, it was clear all was not well and their race ended soon after and they stopped at Sulby village.

Speaking later, a disappointed Tim said; "It's been a tough week to say the least. After the first couple of practice sessions, Dips had to admit defeat and we were all gutted for him after all the work he's put in but there was no shame in it and fair play to him for standing up and making the decision in the best interests of the team. Dan had obviosuly decided to retire from passengering last year but he was in the solo paddock so we approached him and he jumped on board in time for Tuesday. We put in a solid lap and then made a few adjustments to the chassis but had gone in the direction so ended up going slower. We decided to go back to what we knew for Friday but then had some trouble with the valves and only got as far as the Wagon and Horses before we had to stop so it wasn't ideal preparation."

"We were all ready for the race though and were determined to do well but although we were in contention at Glen Helen, I could tell the bike wasn't right. After the problems the night before, we discussed what the best strategy was and the plan was to take it steady on the first lap and then go for it after that but, sadly, we never got that far. The more the lap continued, the worse the problem got and with more valve trouble we had no choice other than to pull in. It's a massive disappointment for the whole team and we've got a lot of work to do between now and Wednesday but we'll dig deep to make sure we're on the line and give it our best shot when the flag drops."

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