Stacey surprises with wins at NW200

Storm Stacey (Ducati Panigale V4R) surprisingly won the second and last race of the Superbike category in this weekend’s North West 200 (NW200).

A rookie at the event, Stacey did not shy away from the fight with the big names of road racing and eventually took the win in Race 2, which was red-flagged at the end of lap three following an oil spill.

But this was just the cherry on top for Stacey, who had previously won the Superstock race on a BMW M1000RR, leaving no other than Michael Dunlop (BMW M1000RR) behind.

In the final race, Stacey took the win in front of two favorites for the final victory, Dean Harrison (Honda CBR1000RR-R) and Glenn Irwin (Ducati Panigale V4R). Peter Hickman (BMW M1000RR) and Josh Brookes (Honda CBR1000RR-R) took fourth and fifth, respectively.

Storm Stacey took his first-ever North West 200 victory in his rookie year at the event in the Superstock race, beating Michael Dunlop on the final lap.

Earlier in the Superstock race, Stacey had taken the lead over Dunlop and Brookes in a restarted race over four laps.

Running on the back of Dunlop, Stacey saw his chance when Dunlop made a mistake at Metropole, losing two places. Eventually, he recovered one position to second at the Juniper Chicane.

Ian Hutchinson (BMW M1000RR) and John McGuinness (Honda CBR1000RR-R) completed the top five.

In the Supersport race, Dunlop (Ducati Panigale V2) won, with Harrison (Honda CBR600RR) taking second place and Brookes (Suzuki GSX-R750) settling for third.

Seventh in Superbike Race 1, Stacey steadily improved his performance lap by lap throughout the day to take the final win.

In Race 1, Irwin (Ducati Panigale V4R) was the winner ahead of Harrison (Honda CBR1000RR-R) and Dunlop (Honda CBR1000RR-R). Hickman (BMW M1000RR) and Brookes (Honda CBR1000RR-R) completed the top five in Race 1.

Four-time Macau winner Hickman also won Supertwin Race 1, riding a Yamaha R7, while Jeremy McWilliams, also on a Yamaha R7, took the win in Supertwin Race 2.

Raced on the north coast of Northern Ireland, featuring an 8.9-mile (14.32km) circuit that links the towns of Portstewart, Coleraine, and Portrush, the NW200 event uses closed public roads, with the start/finish line situated between Portstewart and Coleraine.

As one of the main events on the international road-racing calendar, together with the Isle of Man TT, the race is one of the events where Macau GP organizers recruit and select riders to participate in the Macau GP invitational.

Former Macau GP racer Kamil Holan killed in qualifying crash

Former Macau GP racer Kamil Holan has succumbed to the injuries sustained in a crash during the qualifying session of the NW200 on Thursday (local time).

The rider from Czechia crashed at Station Corner in the morning’s opening Superbike qualifying session.

Despite the known danger and several accidents, Holan was the first fatality at the event since Malachi Mitchell-Thomas was killed in a Supertwins race in 2016.

Another regular presence at the local GP, Laurent Hoffmann, who also competed at the event, told BBC Sport that Holan had been taking part in the event in tribute to his father, who had also passed away recently.

“He was genuine, friendly, and always kind – a good fella with a good heart and a very good rider. I could not say anything bad about him – he was just the best guy,” Hoffmann added.