Guy Martin To Defend His Gold Cup At Olivers’ Mount

The current Steve Henshaw Gold Cup holder, Guy Martin returns to Oliver’s Mount road racing course this weekend Saturday & Sunday 14th & 15th September for the 63rd Steve Henshaw International Gold Cup Road Races.

The Tyco Suzuki rider has won the prestigious trophy no less than eight times including a record-breaking 7 in-a-row between 2003 and 2009. Competition will be tough for Mr. Martin, with four-time TT winner this year, Michael Dunlop on the MD Racing Hondas and H M Plant Padgett’s Honda team-mates, John McGuinness and Bruce Anstey who will both be hungry to finish the 2013 season on the top of the podium. Dean Harrison will also be a serious threat to the ‘established’ stars around the 2.43-mile hillside circuit.

Other racers that will be on the hunt include, Jamie Coward, Jamie Hamilton, Steve Mercer, Keith Pringle, Davy Morgan, Paul Owen, Mick & Mark Goodings and you can’t rule out the man on his swan-song season, Ian Lougher, who so far has 131 wins to his name around ‘the Mount’. William Dunlop, Ivan Lintin, Daniel Frear, Mike Minns, James Cowton are also likely to mix-it with the big bikes on their more versatile 600 mounts.

Michael Dunlop is also down to ride his 250cc Honda twin and will be out to rival his brother William for the top honours in the quarter-litre class, along with Phil Harvey, Justin Waring, Davy Morgan, Paul Owen and Seamus Elliott also charging for the chequered flag.

The 650 SuperTwins class will see battles between Ivan Lintin, Jamie Hamilton, Dean Harrison and James Cowton with challenges coming from Mick Goodings, Chris Palmer, Daniel Frear, David Bell, Craig Shirlaw and James Neesom.

The 125’s will no doubt see a battle royal between the two ‘retiring’ veterans Ian Lougher and Chris Palmer, who will have William Dunlop, Phil Harvey, Peter Wakefield and Tony Flinton to contend with.

In the sidecars and with 16 TT victories to his credit, Dave Molyneux, is the fourth most successful Sidecar driver at Oliver’s Mount with 18 wins to his tally at present, the most recent during the final Sidecar race in 2012.

Dave Molyneux Paddock42

Moly’s main rival will be Ian Bell who now has his son Carl in the chair as passenger. Ian tops the list at Oliver’s Mount with no less than 56 race wins to his credit, taking his maiden sidecar race victory back in 1994 in the second leg of the Formula 2 race at the Gold Cup meeting. Ian and Carl headed home Dave and his passenger Patrick Farrance twice during the ‘Gold Cup’ meeting last year.

Michael Dunlop (sidecar racing debut last year at the ‘mount) with experienced winning TT passenger Dan Sayle in the chair soon learnt the art of sidecar racing taking 7th in his first outing and followed that with a 5th and finally a magnificent 2nd behind Molyneux and Farrance in the third and final race of the meeting.

The Ulster-Manx pairing return on Nick Crowe’s F2 outfit and could be contenders for taking the chequered cloth at least once over the two-day meeting.

Other serious contenders for the threewheel honours at the feature meeting of the year at Oliver’s Mount include three other long time enthusiast supporters of the Auto 66 organisers, Conrad Harrison and Lee Patterson; Carl Fenwick and Jason Crowe and Greg Lambert with Dean Kilkenny in the passengers seat.

Racing starts at 1.00pm both days, with practice and qualifying on Saturday from 9.00am and free practice on Sunday from 9.30am.

Admission is available on the gate at £20 for Saturday and £30 for the Sunday per adult, accompanied children 15 and under are free as is parking. Sorry all advance tickets have been sold out but there will still be plenty of tickets to be bought on the gate but these will not allow you access to the competitors paddock.

For a flavour of the event check out the film below:

Many thanks to the ACU & Auto66

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