ULSTER GP: Ian Hutchinson victorious in Superstock race

Tyco BMW's Ian Hutchinson made it a treble of international road racing wins in the Superstock class at the MCE Ulster Grand Prix on Saturday.
Ian Hutchinson on the Tyco BMW Superstock machine at Dundrod.Ian Hutchinson on the Tyco BMW Superstock machine at Dundrod.
Ian Hutchinson on the Tyco BMW Superstock machine at Dundrod.

The Bingley Bullet got the better of fierce rival Michael Dunlop on a dramatic final lap to add to his wins in the class at the North West 200 and Isle of Man TT this year.

Manx rider Dan Kneen, who won the Superstock race at Dundrod in 2014, was an excellent third on the Mar-Train Yamaha R1.

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Peter Hickman had opened a gap of 2.5 seconds on the first lap after blasting into the lead on the GBmoto Kawasaki, but the British Superbike rider began to fall backwards and eventually withdrew in the pits at the end of lap two with a rear tyre puncture.

Hutchinson, who started from 15th on the grid after practice was held in the damp on Thursday, had incredibly moved into the lead by the end of lap but Dunlop was soon on the move and had taken the lead on lap three.

The two BMW riders began to pull away at the front from Kneen in third to set up a battle on the final laps but it was Hutchinson who prevailed, overhauling Dunlop on the last lap by the time they reached Jordan’s Cross and holding his nerve to take his first Ulster GP win since 2010.

Behind the top three, Dean Harrison claimed fourth on the Silicone Engineering Kawasaki ahead of Conor Cummins (Valvoline Padgetts Honda), with Gary Johnson an excellent sixth on the East Coast/Burdens BMW.

Dublin rider Derek Sheils (Shirlaw Kawasaki) and Steve Mercer (Devitt RC Express Kawasaki) were the top eight.

Neil Kernohan crashed at Wheelers but escaped serious injury.