TT 2026: 'I don't think anybody begrudges me winning it', says Senior race winner Dean Harrison after result declared following one lap

Honda Racing’s Dean Harrison feels nobody could begrudge him being declared the winner of the Milwaukee Senior TT.

The flagship race of the 2026 festival on the Isle of Man was decided on positions after one lap in Friday’s red-flagged race, when Harrison was leading Peter Hickman by 12.4 seconds.

Finland’s Erno Kostamo crashed at the 11th Milestone on the second lap and has since been flown to Aintree Hospital in Liverpool, where he is being treated for leg and hip injuries.

Organisers intended to run the blue riband Senior race over four laps on Saturday, but eventually cancelled the remainder of the event – including the second Sportbike race – because of wet weather and low cloud in an anti-climax to the TT fortnight.

With a result declared, Bradford’s Harrison celebrated a double following his dominant success in the six-lap RST Superbike race.

Hickman (8TEN Racing BMW) and Aussie Josh Brookes (DAO Racing) were the top three podium finishers.

Ian Hutchinson (Team RST BMW), Michael Dunlop (MD/Hawk Racing Honda) and Jamie Coward (Rapid Racing Honda) rounded out the first six.

Harrison lapped at 135.166mph from a standing start on Friday and was inside Hickman’s 136mph outright lap record on his second lap at Ramsey Hairpin when the race was stopped.

“Obviously disappointing to win it how I did, but I’m happy to win it; I don’t think anybody begrudges me winning it, I feel,” said Harrison, who previously won the Senior in 2019.

“Sometimes when a race is cut short people say, ‘you won it because it was cut short’, but everyone was happy we had the pace to win, which makes me feel a bit better.”

Now a seven-time TT winner, Harrison – the winner of the RST Superbike race – said his Senior success “means more” than his previous showpiece victory seven years ago on the Silicone Engineering Kawasaki.

“It almost means more to me actually,” said Harrison.

“They always say the first one is the most special, but to come back and win the Superbike race – it was a true, straight six-lap Superbike race, no messing – and this one, we had a good lead in the race.

“The team’s worked good and they built a special bike for me that I asked specifically for, with some things that worked quite well.

“I can’t complain and I don’t know what else to say. The team’s worked faultless, the bike’s been faultless and we’ve done well, haven’t we?”

Harrison admitted he was disappointed that both RL360 Superstock races were cancelled after claiming a double in the class in 2025, although he accepts that the TT schedule is heavily dependent on good weather and praised Clerk of the Course Gary Thompson’s handling of the situation throughout the TT fortnight.

“Obviously I’m a little bit disappointed with that, but you can’t let stuff like that get to you – you’ve just got to get your head down and go on, that’s all you can do,” said Harrison.

“Not just for me, but for the fans, everybody. We’ve done our best with the time and weather we’ve had, we’ve had the best practice week in the world when we all got sunburnt, and then it changed in race week.

“What can you do? You can’t write it.

“I think Gary’s decisions were brilliant. Even for the racing yesterday, we did well to get in what we did there. There’s things happening that are out of his control that he’s got to deal with that people don’t see.

“Would you want his job? That’s what I’m saying, sometimes you’re damned if you do, and damned if you don’t.

“I can’t think of a bad decision he’s made. Realistically everything he’s done has been a logical, good decision, so you can’t complain.”