Six-time Superbike winner Glenn Irwin reflects on 'dream' day at sun-drenched NW200

The Honda Racing rider gave the Fireblade CBR1000RR-R a perfect roads debut as the biggest motorcycle race in Northern Ireland returned for the first time since 2019.

In warm sunshine and under blue skies, the Carrickfergus rider edged out hot property Davey Todd (Milenco by Padgett’s Honda) by two-tenth-of-a-second to edge the Superbike opener, and Irwin sealed his brace in the headline seven-lap finale, streaking clear around the famous 8.9-mile course to take the chequered flag by 2.4s from impressive Nottingham man Richard Cooper on the Hawk Racing/Buildbase Suzuki.

A number of Irwin’s chief rivals were ruled out of the top-of-the-bill Superbike encounter, including form man Todd plus new outright lap record holder Peter Hickman (FHO Racing BMW) and Michael Dunlop (Hawk Racing), but the 32-year-old British Superbike frontrunner would still have been the man to beat on the official Honda.

It was pole-sitter Irwin’s second NW200 Superbike double following his Superbike clean sweep on Paul Bird’s Ducati in 2018, which extended Northern Ireland’s unbeaten winning streak to 11 years, with John McGuinness the last rider outside these shores to win a Superbike race at the event in 2011.

Overcome with emotion when the job was done, Irwin reflected on a memorable day that showcased the North West 200 at its awe-inspiring best.

“When I came here I’d had success before at the North West 200, but to come here with Honda was something else and we arrived at a time where my BSB career has taken a huge step forward, so we arrived probably with me riding the best I have ever ridden,” he said.

“You do put pressure on yourself, you’ve won here before and you feel like you can do it again, but it never works like that – you have to