Isle of Man TT LIVE: Senior TT latest updates as Peter Hickman wins with lap record to beat Dean Harrison
Follow the latest from the final race at the 2018 Isle of Man TT
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The final race of the 2018 Isle of Man TT takes place on Friday in the form of the Senior TT to cap what has already been a record-breaking week.
The likes of Michael Dunlop, Dean Harrison and Peter Hickman will duke it out on the roads of the Isle of Man at speeds peaking at 200mph in what remains one of the most dangerous races in the world.
Friday afternoon sees the blue ribbon event in the form of the Senior TT – the one they all want to win – and after triumphing in last year’s event, Dunlop is looking to land win No 19 that would put him within four victories of John McGuinness and seven of overall leading race winner Joey Dunlop. But even though he took the spoils in the Superbike TT last Saturday – ridden on the same bikes as today’s event – Harrison holds the outright lap record and took victory in the second Supersport race on Wednesday, while Hickman will also be a threat after winning the Superstock race on Monday.
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Good morning and welcome to The Independent's live coverage of the Senior TT on the Isle of Man as we wrap up what has already been a thrilling week of road racing.
With the second Sidercar race currently in action - the Birchall brother are once again leading the way after Saturday's race one victory midway through lap two - the Senior TT looks on course for its scheduled 12:45pm start time.
However, before then we'll take a look at how the week has unfolded so far, with some monumental highs and some tragic lows to report.
Michael Dunlop kicked off the week in style as he powered to victory in the RST Superbike TT, although the race will be remembered for Dean Harrison's incredible 134.432mph lap that smashed the overall record only for his Kawasaki engine to give up on the fourth lap.
The victory proved to be an incredibly emotional one, not just for Dunlop but the entire Tyco BMW team, as his teammate Dan Kneen suffered a fatal accident just three days before during practice on the Isle of Man.
Kneen crashed at Churchtown and sadly succumbed to his injuries.
Dunlop's big aim this week was to become the first rider to win six races in a week, and that remained on the cards when he took a second victory in the first Supersport TT race.
But again, the celebrations were tinged with sadness once again as Scottish newcomer Adam Lyon suffered a fatal crash during the Supersport race after coming off at Casey's.
Monday's second event saw a record-breaking Superstock TT prove to be one of the closest events ever seen as Dunlop, Harrison and Hickman exchanged the lead throughout the four-lap duel. In the end, it proved to be Hickman that took a nail-biting victory and claim his first TT win.
But Harrison would not be denied, and after Tuesday's rest day, the Yorkshireman battled back from his disappointment earlier in the week to win the second Supersport race and grab his second win at the TT, four years after winning the Lightweight TT.
Michael Dunlop received a 30-second speeding penalty to take him out of contention, but he did still grace the top of the podium after winning the Lightweight TT, while Michael Rutter secured the bragging rights in the TT Zero.
Just 15 minutes until we're underway and tension is building down on the start line. As always, the nerves flood in as the final minutes tick down, with the riders and team members making their way towards the start gantry where they will be waved off in 10 second intervals. Home favourite Conor Cummins will lead them off from the No 1 berth, with James Hillier right behind him and Michael Rutter off at No 3. 16-time winner Ian Hutchinson will be off at 4, but don't expect him to feature at the front as he has struggled all week with the horrendous leg injuries that he continues to recover from, with both eyes on next year's event when he hopes to return to the podium.
The men to watch will follow with Dean Harrison at No 5 and Michael Dunlop at No 6, with the rest of the top 10 going off with Gary Johnson at No 7, David Johnson at No 9 and Peter Hickman off at No 10.
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