NW200: Guy Martin primed for Thursday time attack

Guy Martin is confident he can climb the practice leaderboard during final qualifying at the North West 200 with dry weather forecast for much of Northern Ireland on Thursday.
Tyco BMW's Guy MartinTyco BMW's Guy Martin
Tyco BMW's Guy Martin

The Tyco BMW star was 10th fastest in the Superbike session in the wet on Tuesday and seventh in the Superstock class on the S1000RR.

Alastair Seeley grabbed the headlines with a stunning performance to top the times in both 1000cc classes plus the Supersport session but Martin is hopeful of closing the gap.

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“It’s a tough way to start the roads season in those conditions, so I just kept it smooth and used the track time to gain as much information as we could get,” said the 33-year-old.

“Alastair did a mint job for the team, but dry track time on Thursday is what I’m looking for and the aim is to be in around the sharp end for sure.”

William Dunlop, a Superbike winner at the North West last year, was ninth and fifth in the Superbike and Superstock sessions respectively but expects Tuesday’s times to count for little with lap speeds set to increase dramatically on Thursday afternoon.

“We got through the day and will look forward to what looks like a dry session on Thursday when Tuesday’s times will probably count for nothing,” said Dunlop, who is also one of the favourites in Thursday night’s Supersport race.

“It already looks like Alastair will be the man to beat but we’ll be doing our best to be up there on the front row with him and fighting for the wins.”