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+--- Thread: JOHN MCGUINNESS STARTS AS SUPERBIKE TT FAVOURITE WITH NUMBER ONE PLATE (/showthread.php?tid=13022)
JOHN MCGUINNESS STARTS AS SUPERBIKE TT FAVOURITE WITH NUMBER ONE PLATE - Malcolm - 04-04-2012
![[Image: ttmonsterlogobig.jpg]](http://www.ttwebsite.com/gifs/ttmonsterlogobig.jpg)
Double 2011 Isle of Man TT Race winner John McGuinness will start as favourite for the Dainese Superbike and PokerStars Senior TT’s and will again be carrying the number one plate at the 2012 event.Despite a notably strong line up in 2012 the Morecambe man, with seventeen TT Race victories under his belt, will be the man to beat around the 37¾ mile circuit.
Eighty six riders will start qualifying with seventy start places up for grabs and with fifty-six riders in the 2012 field already clocking laps of over 120mph in previous years, this could be the first year where the entire field goes over 120mph.
There is a new format to this year’s grid positions with numbers 21 onwards starting in qualifying order, but retaining the number allocated, throughout race week. The riders with numbers one to twenty will remain in that order andHonda TT Legends rider John McGuinness, the 2011 outright TT Champion, will again be setting off first down Glencrutchery Road.
At no2, Ryan Farquhar will spearhead Kawasaki’s effort and after missing out on four of the five races in 2011, the KMR rider will be eager to get back to the forefront this time around. Chasing McGuinness will certainly give him a good target to aim for as he seeks his first ever 130mph lap but he’ll also have a major contender for honours hunting him down with Guy Martin on the Tyco Suzuki retaining the number 3 plate. The Lincolnshire rider again came close in 2011 so will be hoping that if he notches his 14th podium, it will finally be on the top step.
Cameron Donald has opted to go at No 4 again, having competed there in a number of races last year. The Wilson Craig Racing rider is always a contender for honours on the Isle of Man but will need to up his pace if he’s to emulate his Superbike race win in 2008.
Fellow Antipodean Bruce Anstey has gone off at No 5 for many years and will again be there at TT2012 with the Padgetts Honda ace looking to repeat the form he showed 12 months ago when he challenged McGuinness in both the Superbike and Senior races. He’s yet to win a premier Superbike race win on the Island but, after lapping in the 131mph bracket, he’s well placed to put that right.
Starting behind him at No 6 will be 2010 record breaker Ian Hutchinson who’ll finally get the chance to race his Swan Yamaha’s around the Mountain Course. Recovering from a second broken leg, you’ll be hard pressed to find a more determined rider on the grid in 2012 and, if he’s fully fit, Hutchy has a great chance of adding to his eight TT wins.
Another potential race winner starts behind him with Gary Johnson, now on the Padgetts Honda, starting at no7 and having taken 3rd place in last years Superbike race, he’ll fancy his chances of going two better and adding to last years Supersport win.
Northern Ireland Stalwart Adrian Archibald goes at No 8 just ahead of fellow countryman Michael Dunlop who, after a long winter, lines up with a formidable team behind him. With the potential to dominate race week, the 24-year old will be confident on the Hunts Motorcycles Honda Fireblade. If he can show the form he did in the Superstock race last year, he’ll certainly be challenging at the top of the leaderboard.
Completing the top ten for the third year in a row is Manxman Conor Cummins. The Ramsey man, now back to full fitness, will be hoping to serve up a repeat performance of 2010 when he comfortably led the Superbike race. The fastest rider from a standing start, Cummins will be Tyco Suzuki mounted in 2012, with the factory backing sure to help him in his bid to achieve his maiden TT win.
After spending the last few years at No 13, race fans will have to get used to Dan Stewart with the No 11 plate and the Wilcock Consulting rider deservedly moves up the order after a succession of top six finishes in the last three seasons.
Michael Rutter returns, this time on the Batham’s Kawasaki, at No 12, just ahead of two other Kawasaki riders, James Hillier and Ian Lougher. Hillier takes the No 13 plate and has already indicated he’s looking to join the 130mph club and crack the top six whileLougher, now in his 28th year of racing at the TT, can again be relied upon to put in some solid performances.
William Dunlop starts at No 15 and no doubt race commentary will have to wait until he passes through the various timing points before announcing the leaderboard and the same can be said for Daniel Kneen, the Marks Bloom Suzuki rider starting ten seconds further back at No 16.
Simon Andrews, the best Newcomer at TT2011, is rewarded with a good start number of 17 on the second Honda TT Legends machine while the returning James McBride, Mark Miller and Davy Morgan complete the top 20.
With qualifying determining the remaining start positions on the grid, but the remaining riders will be keen to maintain or improve their places. German Rico Penzkofer will be spotted by the No 21 plate whilst another leading European rider, Portugal’s Luis Carreira will have No 22.
The JMF Millsport Ducati Panigale of Steve Mercer will have the No 24 plate and other leading privateers to look out for include Ian Mackman (26), John Burrows (27), Stefano Bonetti (29), Paul Shoesmith (30) and Mark Buckley (31).
Exciting Australian rider David Johnson, fastest newcomer in 2010, returns at No 32 after missing last year, with another returnee Kiaran Hankin at 33 whilst regulars Rob Barber, Russ Mountford, Paul Owen, Stephen Thompson and Daniel Cooper will be next in the race guide.
The overseas challenge is again well represented with Spain’s Antonio Maeso, South African Hudson Kennaugh, Hungarian Sandor Bitter, Herve Gantner from Switzerland and Italian World Supersport podium finisher Alessio Corradi all in the top sixty starters. Fabrice Miguet from France, American Brandon Cretu and Japanese rider Yoshinari Matsushita will also attract international fans.
Jenny Tinmouth is back for her third TT seeded just behind one of the most welcome returnees Olie Linsdell, who missed last years TT, whilst newcomers to look out for include Jamie Hamilton, Alan Bonner, Lee Johnston, John Ingram and Karl Harris. Meanwhile, riders moving up from the Manx GP include the Northern Ireland trio of Shaun Anderson, Ryan McCay and William Davison.
Paul Phillips, TT and Motorsport Manager, Isle of Man Government, commented:
“There’s no doubt that we are now seeing the benefits of the events increased profile and the rider recruitment programme with the strongest field in living memory. You can throw a blanket over the front of the field and any one of the top ten could win the race and any of the top twenty on their day could podium. We’ve also got great strength in depth with the possibility of every starter in the Senior Race recording a 120mph lap and some high profile newcomers boosting the long term prospects for the TT.”
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