Herbertson Heads the Timesheets in Afternoon Qualifying
The 2024 Manx Grand Prix qualifying continued on Friday afternoon, with Dominic Herbertson leading the way after an impressive performance in the Classic Superbike class. Riding the BHR Racing Kawasaki, Herbertson clocked a top speed of 122.600mph, placing him firmly at the top of the leaderboard.
Earlier in the day, heavy overnight rain had caused the cancellation of the morning session, but the Mountain Course dried sufficiently for practice to resume in the afternoon. Despite lingering damp patches and strong winds, the Classic Senior, Classic Junior, and Lightweight session got underway at 1:45 PM.
Stuart Hall was the first to complete a lap, reaching 108.177mph on his Whippet Racing Yamaha. However, it was Michael Dunlop, the 29-time Isle of Man TT winner, who initially led the way with a lap of 108.945mph on his MD Racing Honda. Dunlop was closely followed by Lee Johnston and Alan Oversby, with speeds of 107.183mph and 106.899mph, respectively.
As conditions improved, Hall upped his speed to 111.535mph, overtaking Dunlop to move to the top of the leaderboard. Michael Evans also impressed, with a late lap of 108.868mph securing him a spot in the top four, while Owen Monaghan became the second quickest 400cc runner with a lap of 105.045mph.
In the Classic Senior class, John McGuinness initially set the pace with a speed of 107.921mph on the Winfield Paton. Mike Browne and Shaun Anderson followed closely behind. Anderson later improved his speed to 108.410mph, taking the lead in the session.
A brief delay due to a medical emergency led to the second session for the Classic Superbike, Senior, and Junior classes starting at 3:07 PM. Herbertson again proved his prowess by setting the quickest time of 120.638mph on the opening lap and then increasing his pace to 122.600mph on his second lap.
In the Senior class, Chris Cook led the field with an initial pace of 114.654mph on his Kawasaki, later improving to 115.615mph. Other notable performances came from Michael Gahan, Dan Sayle, and newcomers Johnny Stewart and Caomhan Canny, who all broke the 110mph barrier.
In the Junior class, Daniel Ingham took an early lead with a speed of 110.599mph but was soon overtaken by Andrea Majola. The Italian rider, piloting the VAS Engine Racing Paton, topped the charts at 112.500mph, confirming his status as the rider to beat on race day.