Cloudy conditions in the Isle of Man didn’t stop the Scottish Life International Superstock TT being a blistering race.
At the end of four laps it was Australian Cameron Donald who took the win, his second ever TT victory coming just two days after he dominated the Dainese Superbike race.
Second was 13-times TT winner John McGuinness and third Guy Martin.
On lap one, McGuinness took an early lead at Glen Helen, but Donald was soon in control.
Over the Mountain section low-lying cloud led to some caution from the riders, meaning the standing lap record wasn’t threatened.
At the end of lap two Martin had taken third place away from Ryan Farquhar, who had set the fastest time in Superstock practice. Lap two saw last year’s Supertock winner Bruce Anstey retire in the pits.
Donald maintained his lead after the pit stops at the end of lap two, keeping the gap to McGuinness at about 17 seconds. On the last two circuits McGuinness pulled a couple of seconds back.
However, nothing could stop Donald taking his and team Relentless by TAS Suzuki’s second win of TT2008.
Speaking afterward he said:
‘This one everyone was in. The guys had a bit of bad luck on Saturday and I have got so much respect for John and Guy, this is just brilliant.’
‘The Suzuki just works so well. This is really special.’
McGuinness, on the podium for the 26th time at the TT, said:
‘I didn’t know what to expect with the Superstock bike. I have never really been a lover of them, but I’m getting to like them!’
‘The bike was brilliant and I may a good start. I was a bit cautious through the mist and dropped a bit of time.’
‘To finish second is just brilliant. The bike was a winner, it was me, I just wasn’t sharp enough.’
Third-placed Martin said:
‘No, I’m not happy with third, I wanted to win. I think I got the quickest lap on the last lap so it was the best of a bad job I suppose.’
‘I just kept plugging away and plugging away. I should have pushed a bit harder.’
‘Third, yeah I suppose I have to be happy enough. Mustn’t grumble.’
The Relentless Supersport Junior TT is due to start at 1.15pm.
You can download the provisional results below in PDF format. The official race report and results will be posted later.
To download the times you will require Adobe Acrobat Reader from Adobe.com
