Michael Dunlop and Ryan Farquhar will go head to head at the Around-A-Pound Tandragee 100, which makes a welcome return to the road racing calendar following a one year absence.

The feature senior class looks set to be a clash between the Kawasaki-mounted duo following their high speed battle at last week’s Cookstown 100.

Dunlop was a treble winner at the last running of the Co Armagh event in 2009, including a first major four-stroke success in the Supersport class, and will be riding his new Paul Bird Motorsport prepared Street Sweep Kawasaki Superbike competitively for the first time on the roads.

Dunlop said: “This will be a whole different ball game this weekend as this is a more powerful machine than I rode at Cookstown and it will be a case of waiting to see how it handles over the bumps and jumps in practice.

“I got the Superstock bike to work well at Cookstown and we gave Farquhar a real run for his money. I’m sure we will not be far off the mark this weekend.

“I would imagine it will come down to Ryan and me again. Tandragee is a totally different circuit to Cookstown — longer, more variation, a real riders’ circuit.”

Farquhar was a five-time winner at Cookstown last week and will be looking to continue his superb start to the season.

“It couldn’t have gone any better than it did at Cookstown and of course I’ll be looking for more of the same at Tandragee where I have won seven times in the past.

“I had to dig deep to get those wins at Cookstown and I expect it will be the same this weekend,” said Farquhar.

With the Wilson Craig Honda rider Cameron Donald and Relentless Suzuki by TAS man Guy Martin giving Tandragee a miss, six-time winner around the 5.3 mile circuit Adrian Archibald, John Burrows, Davy Morgan, Derek Sheils and Michael Pearson should provide the main opposition.

William Dunlop misses the four-stroke races tomorrow, concentrating on the 125 and 250 GP races where he will start as firm favourite in both, hoping to have ironed out the ignition problems that beset the Delaney Honda last weekend while looking to repeat his 250 GP race win.

The chicane that has caused so much controversy at Tandragee since its introduction 10 years ago has been removed and although races will start from the usual position, the finish line and the paddock have been relocated closer to Bell’s Crossroads.