Race = contest of speed. that's it.
I was a little sceptical of the electrics at first, but now the speeds have increased tremendously, it has become much more interesting!
I would think within the next couple of years they will run more than 1 lap, with more entries too.
One point for your consideration, if a 'traditional' TT race was red flagged & shortened, for whatever reason, down to one lap, would that count?