Isle of Man TT 2012: Lightweight TT Results

Ryan Farquhar earned his third ever Isle of Man TT win in the return of the Lightweight TT class.

Absent since the 2009 Isle of Man TT with 250cc machines, the 2012 iteration of the Lightweight class features 650cc twins such as the Kawasaki Ninja 650 (or ER-6F, as it’s known on that side of the Pond) which most competitors rode. The race was moved back to Saturday, June 9, after rain forced organizers to cancel the initially-scheduled Friday race.

Farquhar got off to a strong start to the three-lap race, leading the opening lap with a time of 19:40.21, followed by James Hillier who also put in a lap time under 20 minutes with a time of 19:54.32, and Michael Rutter in third at 20:01.87.

Hillier took over the lead on Lap Two after Farquhar opted for an early pit stop. Hillier led by nearly seven seconds after the second lap but it was his turn to hit the pits.

That returned the lead to Farquhar who put in a fast final lap to finish with a time of 59:29.57, averaging 114.155 mph on the Mountain Course. Hillier also came in under an hour with a time of 59:58.57 (averaging 113.235 mph). Michael Rutter with a race-best 19:35.45 on the final lap came in third, averaging 113.077 through the entire race.

[Source: IOMTT]

By Dennis Chung