This year marks the centenary of the Sidecar class at the TT, with the first of two races in 2023 taking place on Saturday evening.
A serious road traffic accident this morning delayed the three-lap Sidecar contest to 5pm, but it proved worth the wait as the Birchall brothers made history.
Dominating the race, the Birchalls stormed to victory, having set the first ever 120mph lap for the class at the TT with a 120.357mph effort to obliterate their existing record.
Starting number one on the road, the Sidecar favourites set their stall out early with a 3.9-second lead through the first sector time at Glen Helen.
Giving chase was the FHO Motorsport outfit of driver Peter Founds and passenger Jevan Walmsley, who kept the Birchalls honest over the first lap.
They’d cut their deficit down to 3.3s as they began the second lap, with the Birchalls threatening a new lap record with an opening effort of 118.577mph.
Through Glen Helen on lap two, the Birchalls had guided their Honda-powered Stedplan/Hager outfit to a 6.7s lead, before extending this to 10.1s at Ballaugh.
Source: Autosport