Two more wins and new lap record for Yokohama at the TT

There was much to celebrate on the Isle of Man last week, as Yokohama tyres helped Dave Molyneux to clinch another pair of wins in the sidecar class of the week-long races and become the most successful sidecar rider in the event’s history. And the icing on the cake for the Japanese tyre manufacturer was when Nick Crowe broke the sidecar lap record, previously held by Molyneux, recording an average speed of more than 116mph. Once again, Yokohama tyres were chosen by the frontrunners in the sidecar class for the centenary running of the world’s most famous motorbike races.

Already one of the most successful riders in the history of the event, Molyneux was this year partnered for the first time by Rick Long. In the first of the two sidecar races, it was Crowe and partner Dan Sayle who led early on but mechanical problems would cut their race short. The lead was inherited by John Holden but on the second lap, Molyneux began his charge and by the end of the lap, was just two seconds off the lead. He caught and passed Holden and having set the fastest lap of the race, went on to take the win by over six seconds.

The second race took place two days later but the start was delayed, when there were reports of a dog having strayed onto the circuit. This played perfectly into Molyneux’ hands, as he was having technical difficulties with his bike. As the dog was found and moved to a safe location, Molyneux’ HM Plant Honda Team mechanics attended to his outfit and by the time the race started, he was back on song.

Once again, Nick Crowe led in the early stages and it was here that he broke the lap record, with an incredible average speed of 116.667mph on Yokohama tyres. However, again his race would be short-lived, as his engine failed as he crossed the start/finish line at the beginning of the final lap. This handed the lead to Moly, who by this point had a 25-second margin over Holden, for the second time.

These two results bring Moly’s record of wins on the island to 13 and make him the third-highest placed rider, in terms of wins, behind Mike Hailwood and Joey Dunlop. It also gives Yokohama its 14 th straight year with a win in the category.

But Moly’s work wasn’t over yet. On the final day of the centenary event, he was invited to take part in the MCN Parade of Champions, completing a lap of honour of the circuit alongside greats such as Carl Fogarty, John Surtees, Kevin Schwantz and Nori Haga. To further recognise his efforts, Moly’s outfit from the 2006 race, which he crashed and caught fire, has now been resurrected in the TT museum on the island, to honour the most successful sidecar racer in the event’s history.

A clearly-ecstatic Molyneux said; “This is a fantastic result and I’m delighted with it. The run-up to this year’s event was a bit fraught, as we didn’t get the last of our new parts until ten days before the start of practice and we had an engine assembly fault show up during running. By the middle of practice week, it wasn’t looking good.

“However, we eventually got back to speed and I felt that I rode better at this year’s TT than I have ever ridden before, albeit on a bike 10mph slower than I’m used to.”

“I have to thank Yokohama for its support and its part in achieving this success on the Isle of Man. I’ve been with the manufacturer since 1993 and all but one of my wins have been on Yokohama. The engineers have worked incredibly hard to help us find an excellent set-up for the bike and it gives us so much confidence to go fast. I know that I wouldn’t get that level of commitment and performance anywhere else. I’m also positive that we haven’t reached the full potential of the tyre yet – there’s still more to come and I look forward to developing the outfit further.”