Glorious weather greeted riders on the first qualifying evening of the 2025 Isle of Man TT Races, and it didn’t take long for Dean Harrison to make his mark. The Honda Racing rider delivered a blistering 133.069mph lap — the fastest ever recorded on the opening night of TT qualifying — putting down an early marker in the Superbike class.
In Superstock, Davey Todd was quickest aboard the Monster Energy by 8TEN Racing BMW with a 131.231mph lap. Michael Dunlop topped the Supersport timesheets with a 127.181mph run on his Milwaukee Ducati, while Rob Hodson led the Supertwin class on the SMT Racing Paton at 119.521mph. The Crowe brothers, Ryan and Callum, went fastest in the Sidecar session with a 118.797mph lap, though worsening fog meant their run was cut short to just one lap.
SUPERBIKE & SUPERSTOCK: EARLY PACE SETTERS EMERGE
Qualifying began promptly at 6:30 p.m. with both Superbike and Superstock machines heading out together. Among the first on track were Peter Hickman, John McGuinness MBE, David Johnson, Dean Harrison, Conor Cummins, and Rob Hodson on Superbikes, while Michael Dunlop, Davey Todd, James Hillier, Josh Brookes, Ian Hutchinson, and Mike Browne led the Superstock contingent.
Harrison led the way down Bray Hill, followed closely by Hillier and Johnson. Dunlop wasted no time, catching and overtaking Hodson before Glen Helen, underlining his intent for the evening. Harrison’s first lap clocked in at 130.897mph, and he carried straight on for another.
Todd led early in the Superstock standings with a 130.667mph lap, just edging out Dunlop’s 130.387mph before Dunlop switched to his Superbike. Hickman posted 129.663mph to sit second among Superbikes, with Nathan Harrison (127.950mph) not far behind. In Superstock, Dominic Herbertson slotted into second with a 128.226mph, just ahead of Browne on 127.778mph.
Among the newcomers, Mitch Rees and Barry Burrell impressed with solid first laps of 119.775mph and 114.359mph respectively.
HARRISON RAISES THE BAR
On his second lap, Harrison really turned up the heat, recording a sensational 133.069mph lap — a new benchmark for an opening night at the TT. Behind him, Hickman improved to 131.076mph, followed by Dunlop (129.975mph), Nathan Harrison (128.825mph), Shaun Anderson (128.140mph), McGuinness (128.031mph), Hodson (127.491mph), and Johnson (127.238mph).
Todd responded in kind on his Superstock BMW, posting a 131.231mph lap to top that class. Herbertson followed with 129.257mph, ahead of Paul Jordan (128.055mph), Cummins (128.041mph), Browne (127.907mph), and James Hind (127.059mph). Rees kept his momentum going, reaching 123.050mph by his fourth lap.
Later in the session, Harrison added a 131.098mph lap on a Superstock machine to slot in behind Todd, while Todd’s own Superbike run of 130.402mph moved him up to third overall behind Harrison and Hickman.
DUNLOP DOMINATES IN SUPERSPORT; HODSON LEADS SUPERTWIN
At 7:20 p.m., it was the turn of the Supersport and Supertwin classes. Michael Rutter led the Supertwin group out on the Bathams Ales Yamaha, followed by James Hind (North Lincs Components Suzuki), Paul Jordan (Jackson Racing/Prosper2 Honda), and Gary Johnson (CD Racing/MSS Performance Kawasaki). Michael Dunlop followed shortly afterward on his Milwaukee Ducati.
Dunlop set the early pace in Supersport with a 125.742mph lap, ahead of Jordan (123.742mph), Browne (122.915mph), Hind (122.584mph), Michael Evans (122.184mph), Anderson (120.836mph), and the returning Gary Johnson (120.795mph). Dean Harrison briefly disrupted the leaderboard with a 125.650mph lap, but Dunlop quickly responded, upping his pace to 127.181mph to reclaim the top spot. Harrison (126.436mph) and Todd (124.238mph) followed, with Hickman (124.085mph), Browne (123.998mph), and Hillier (123.858mph) completing the top six.
In Supertwin action, Barry Furber led early on with a 116.050mph lap before being overtaken by Italy’s Stefano Bonetti (116.579mph). But it was Rob Hodson who surged ahead with a strong 118.832mph effort, followed closely by Michael Evans (118.646mph).
Hodson improved again on his second lap to 119.521mph. With just minutes left in the session, Hickman, Dunlop, and Todd all swapped to their Supertwin bikes. Hodson’s lap remained unbeaten, with Dunlop second (119.068mph), Browne fourth (118.579mph), Todd fifth (117.634mph), and Hickman sixth (116.718mph).
SIDECARS: CROWES QUICK BUT SESSION CUT SHORT
The Sidecars rolled off at 8:10 p.m., led by the Crowe brothers, followed by Ben Birchall/Tom Rosney, Crawford/Hardie, Blackstock/Lawrence, Ellis/Clement, and the Ramsden duo.
The Crowes set the standard with a 118.797mph lap, ahead of Founds/Walmsley (115.370mph), Crawford/Hardie (113.742mph), Blackstock/Lawrence (112.975mph), Birchall/Rosney (112.821mph), and Ellis/Clement (108.932mph). Unfortunately, thickening low cloud on the Mountain section forced organisers to curtail the session after just one lap.
Photos: Isle of Man TT Races
