Johnny Stewart wins Sportbike Manx GP, strong performance from Chris Meyer

In the Manx GP Sportbike category race, Johnny Stewart got off to a perfect start. By the end of the first of three laps, the rider who had set the fastest time in qualifying had already taken the lead. At no point was the Scottish Aprilia rider’s victory in any doubt. In the end, he had not only broken the lap record but also finished more than 22 seconds ahead of the runner-up.

Second place went to the Briton Eddy Wormald, although he had to wait a long time before he could be sure of his position, as Northern Irishman Kevin Lavery was gaining momentum. On the final lap, the Manx Grand Prix newcomer broke the old lap record. He was just over four and a half seconds off second place.

Chris Meyer pushed himself hard on Saturday. Just one lap of the Snaefell Mountain Course, which is over 60 kilometres long, is an incredible physical and mental strain in itself. Around midday, the German took the opportunity to complete two further practice laps on his Ultra-Lightweight machine to memorise the key sections.

After a short break, the 54-year-old hopped back on his motorbike to take part in the Sportbike MGP class race. Riding his Kawasaki ER-6F, the 2025 Irish Road Racing Champion in the Moto3/125GP class crossed the finish line in 34th place with a time of one hour and 10:45.394 minutes. His compatriot Lorenz Rothärmel did not appear at the start.

Sportbike Manx GP results, Isle of Man, 22 August 2006

1. Johnny Stewart (GB), Aprilia, 3 laps in 59:06.640 mins. 2. Eddy Warmald (GB), Yamaha, 22.456 sec behind. 3. Kevin Lavery (GB), Kawasaki, +26.999 sec. 4. Andrew Farrell (IRL), Aprilia. 5. Graham Mcaleese (GB), Aprilia. 6. Dan Sayle (GBM), Aprilia. Also: 34th Chris Meyer, Kawasaki. DNS: Lorenz Rothärmel (D), Aprilia.

Topic of the week

Topic of the week: Aprilia comeback? The truth is: Aprilia never went away!

Four weeks ago, Aprilia headed into the summer break from Germany with a badly injured Marco Bezzecchi. The response came from the heart of British motor racing: ‘Together we are strong!’

Thomas Kuttruf

Read more