Dean Harrison takes North West 200 Superbike pole after sombre day

Dean Harrison takes North West 200 Superbike pole

Thursday evening qualifying resumed at the 2026 Briggs Equipment North West 200 following the day’s earlier fatal incident, with riders returning to the Triangle circuit for shortened final sessions across all four classes.

In difficult circumstances on the north coast, Honda Racing’s Dean Harrison emerged as the fastest man in the Superbike class, securing pole position for Saturday’s feature races after producing the quickest lap of the evening on his Honda Racing Fireblade.

The final qualifying sessions had been reduced to 30 minutes per class after Thursday morning’s tragic incident during qualifying, which claimed the life of a competitor at Station Corner.

Despite the sombre atmosphere surrounding the paddock and spectators around the circuit, racing teams and riders returned to the course following the approval of the deceased rider’s family for the event to continue.

Harrison leads Superbike field

Harrison, still chasing a first North West 200 victory, laid down a commanding pace in the Superbike session to finish 2.32 seconds clear of 11-time North West winner Glenn Irwin on the Nitrous Competitions Ducati.

Richard Cooper secured a front-row start on the SMS/Nicholl Oils BMW, although he was almost two seconds slower than Irwin.

Josh Brookes placed fourth on the DAO Racing Honda, while local road racing star Michael Dunlop and Storm Stacey rounded out the top six.

Dunlop and Stacey were separated by just 0.101 of a second as competition remained exceptionally tight behind the leading trio.

Hickman claims Supertwin/Sportbike pole

Peter Hickman

Peter Hickman topped the Supertwin/Sportbike qualifying standings on the Swan Racing/PHR Yamaha with a fastest lap of 4 minutes 50.266 seconds.

Last year’s class winner Paul Jordan finished second on the Jackson Racing/Prosper 2 Aprilia, just over a second behind Hickman.

Veteran racer Jeremy McWilliams completed the front row on the Flitwick/SMV Aprilia, finishing 0.631 seconds further back.

Alastair Seeley

Alastair Seeley impressed with fourth place aboard the Binch Pro/3B Construction Aprilia, ahead of Michael Sweeney and Jamie Coward.

Michael Dunlop excites local fans in Superstock

Crowds around the Triangle circuit were lifted by a standout performance from Ballymoney rider Michael Dunlop, who stormed to Superstock pole position on his MD Racing BMW.

Michael Dunlop

Dunlop posted a fastest lap of 4 minutes 23.441 seconds to edge out Richard Cooper by 0.404 seconds.

Dean Harrison completed the top three, while newcomer Storm Stacey continued to attract attention with another strong performance around the demanding road circuit.

Stacey finished fourth on the CD Racing by MSS Performance/Alpha Racing BMW ahead of Josh Brookes, with Paul Jordan completing the top six.

Supersport session halted after red flag incident

The evening’s Supersport qualifying session was brought to an early end after being red flagged following an incident at the Whins area of Portrush.

Organisers confirmed the competitor involved was taken by ambulance to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast.

No further details on the rider’s condition were released on Thursday evening.

Before the stoppage, Alastair Seeley had set the fastest time in class on the Binch Pro Racing/3B Ducati with a lap of 4 minutes 38.608 seconds.

Michael Dunlop was second quickest on the Scars/MD Racing Ducati, just 0.366 seconds behind Seeley, while Dean Harrison placed third for Honda Racing.

Erno Kostamo, Ian Hutchinson and Paul Jordan completed the top six in the Supersport standings.

North West 200 weekend continues under shadow of tragedy

The final qualifying results now set the grid for Saturday’s races, although the 2026 North West 200 continues under the shadow of Thursday morning’s fatal incident.

Thousands of spectators remain on the north coast for one of the biggest events in Northern Ireland’s sporting calendar, with road racing fans, teams and organisers continuing to balance fierce on-track competition with the emotional impact of the tragedy that unfolded earlier in the day.