TT 2015: Hutchy: Beating Dunlop makes it more special
Ian Hutchinson said beating Michael Dunlop in the RL360 Superstock race on Tuesday made his second victory of the 2015 Isle of Man TT extra special.
The BMW Kawasaki rider, who opened his account after winning the first Monster Energy Supersport race on Monday evening, smashed the race record by some 32 seconds after the four-lap thriller, boosting his Mountain Course tally to 10 wins as he crossed the line 17.2 seconds clear of Dunlop on the MD Racing BMW.
Northern Ireland's Lee Johnston sealed the last podium place on the ECC/Burdens BMW after edging out James Hillier on the final lap by only 0.207 seconds for his first TT rostrum.
Hutchinson's team produced an ace card when they changed his rear wheel during the pit stop, still gaining four seconds on early leader Dunlop in the pits, and the 35-year-old made the fresh tyre count in the second part of the race, pulling away to win comfortably in the end as his sensational renaissance continues.
The 'Bingley Bullet' said: "In the four years I've been out, Michael's been the man to beat so to win today and get the better of him makes the win extra special.
"I've worked really hard and all the time I've spent in the gym over winter getting fit has paid off although I was a bit unsure about our chances when the team told me about the wheel change.
"Every rider will tell you that having a wheel change is an incredibly scary thing but fair play to Sam Neate, he did a mega job and it gave the initiative I needed," added Hutchinson, who delivered the PBM team's first TT victory since Joey Dunlop won the Formula One race in 2000.
"It was always going to be the hardest race of the week but the team did a fantastic job and there was no panic or drama as far as that was concerned."
Hutchinson was a worried man on the final lap when he began to run low on fuel but managed to nurse the ZX-10R to the finish.
"I was worried as I started running low on fuel at the Bungalow on the last lap so I drafted John McGuinness down the Mountain to conserve it and I was also on the path at Bedstead one lap so it wasn't all plain sailing," he added.
