Michael Dunlop MBE won the 2026 Lightweight Classic TT race and Joe Loughlin claimed victory in the Ultra-Lightweight Classic TT on Sunday, August 23, during the Classic TT festival on the Isle of Man. According to official results, Dunlop dominated the three-lap combined Lightweight/Ultra-Lightweight event on a Honda RS250, while Loughlin won the Ultra-Lightweight class riding a Kawasaki ZXR400.
Dunlop completed the three-lap Lightweight Classic TT race on the Snaefell Mountain Course in 57 minutes, 44.357 seconds, riding the Milenco by Padgetts Motorcycles Honda RS250, according to official timing data published by the Isle of Man TT organisation. His final lap speed of 119.081 mph was the fastest in the Lightweight category and secured a winning margin of three minutes and three seconds over second-placed Michael Sweeney, who rode a Yamaha 250 for IMS/CSC Racing. Rhys Hardisty, riding a Yamaha 250 for GATC/Phil Anslow, finished third in the Lightweight class, marking his first Classic TT podium since 2015, officials confirmed.
The Lightweight and Ultra-Lightweight Classic TT race was a combined event held on Sunday, August 23, 2026, during Day 2 of the Classic TT festival on the Isle of Man.
The race format grouped 250cc Lightweight and 400cc Ultra-Lightweight machines in a single contest over three laps of the Mountain Course, with separate class honours and records recognised for each engine category, according to race organisers and specialist road-racing outlets.
Joe Loughlin, representing G2 Technical Services Ltd, claimed victory in the Ultra-Lightweight class on a Kawasaki ZXR400. Official results show Loughlin completed the three laps in 1 hour, 1 minute, and 27.415 seconds. His final lap speed of 113.524 mph set a new all-time lap record for a 400cc machine on the Mountain Course, breaking the previous record of 112.40 mph set by Jim Moodie in 1993. Loughlin finished more than 22 seconds ahead of his nearest Ultra-Lightweight rival, with Monaghan and Cassidy reported as the other podium finishers in the 400cc class, according to race reports and official classifications.
In the combined Lightweight/Ultra-Lightweight results, Dunlop was the overall race winner, followed by Michael Sweeney in second place, and Loughlin as the leading 400cc rider in third overall. Qualifying sessions earlier in the week had shown both Dunlop and Loughlin consistently topping their respective class leaderboards, with Dunlop lapping in the 116–117 mph range for Lightweight and Loughlin recording speeds over 110 mph for Ultra-Lightweight, sources confirmed.
Dunlop’s victory marked his second consecutive Lightweight Classic TT win, having also won the category in 2025 on an MD Racing Honda 250. That previous race was a two-lap contest, where he secured a winning margin of just over 47 seconds over Ian Lougher. The 2026 race extended Dunlop’s dominance in the Lightweight class, with official channels describing his performance as “runaway” and “dominant” due to his control from start to finish. On the same day, Dunlop also won the Formula 1 Classic TT race, completing a Sunday double and adding to his growing tally of wins on the Mountain Course, which stood at 42 victories by the end of 2025, according to Manx media and official race communications.
Loughlin’s Ultra-Lightweight class victory and record-breaking lap ended a 33-year-old record on the Mountain Course for 400cc machines. His performance was highlighted across official reports as a significant milestone, with his lap speed surpassing Jim Moodie’s 1993 record by more than 1 mph. Loughlin’s margin of victory in the Ultra-Lightweight class was 22.3 seconds, and another Ultra-Lightweight competitor also recorded a lap speed exceeding 111 mph, illustrating the competitive pace in the 400cc category, according to timing data and race coverage.
The Lightweight podium comprised Michael Dunlop on the Honda 250, Michael Sweeney on the Yamaha 250, and Rhys Hardisty on the Yamaha 250. In the Ultra-Lightweight category, Joe Loughlin took first place on the Kawasaki ZXR400, with Monaghan and Cassidy completing the class podium. The combined race results placed Loughlin third overall behind Dunlop and Sweeney. The race format and official classifications maintained separate honours for the two engine classes despite the combined contest, as outlined by the Isle of Man TT organisation.
The Classic TT festival continues to feature multiple classes and race formats on the Snaefell Mountain Course, with the Lightweight and Ultra-Lightweight races forming an integral part of the event’s schedule. Michael Dunlop’s back-to-back Lightweight Classic TT wins and Joe Loughlin’s Ultra-Lightweight record lap are the latest additions to the event’s history of competitive road racing on the Isle of Man.
