        It wasn&rsquo;t the debut that Michael Dunlop hoped for at the Imatra road circuit. On the 60th anniversary of the track dedicated to Jarno Saarinen, the 21-time TT winner took part in the Finnish round of the International Road Racing Championship for the first time, riding a Honda CBR1000RR-R. Unfortunately though, technical problems saw him forced to wave the white flag in both race 1 and race 2. The Tourist Trophy stars were represented by Gary Johnson, a wildcard entry in the Supersport race with a Triumph, who scored a solid sixth place finish in race 1 (won by Petr Najman) before reaching the podium in race 2, closing third behind Jorn Hamberg and Marek Cerveny. Erno Kostamo dominates among the 1000s  With Michael Dunlop&rsquo;s unfortunate exit, the 1000 class was dominated by Erno Kostamo at Imatra. In the first race, the BMW rider beat David Datzer and Pierre-Yves Bian to finish first, and then did triumphed once again in race two, crossing the line ahead of Lukas Maurer and David Datzer. As for the Italian entries, Luca Gottardi did well to finish twelfth in both race 1 and race 2, competing for team Penz13. The Italian road racer will be back in action alongside the rest of the IRRC field over the weekend of 23-24 July in Chimay, Belgium, the stage for the third round of the championship. Translated by Heather Watson GT, Valentino Rossi applauded by his team-mate: &ldquo;The podium&rsquo;s close&rdquo;       

The 21-time TT winner takes part in the races at the legendary Finnish track for the first time, but fails to achieve the desired results. Kostamo dominates among the 1000s

Road Races, IRRC: an unlucky debut for Michael Dunlop at Imatra

        Over the weekend of 2-3 July, one of the most prestigious and historic road races on the motorcycling landscape, the Imatranajo GP, will play out. This second round of the International Road Racing Championship season will see the famous Finnish circuit celebrate 60 years of activity, the track having changed its name just a few months ago to become the &ldquo;Jarno Saarinen Circuit Imatra&rdquo;, a tribute to the motorcycling legend himself. Michael Dunlop to compete with Honda  While, on the one hand, the paddock will remember the late Mark Purslow, a frontrunner in the Supersport class who lost his life during this year&rsquo;s TT, on the other hand, this second round of the 2022 IRRC will be interesting for a number of reasons. Not least, the presence of road racing legend and 21-time Tourist Trophy winner, Michael Dunlop, who dominated in the Supersport class on the Isle of Man just a few weeks ago. Following in the footsteps of Uncle Joey, who won at Imatra in 1986, the rider from Ballymoney will make his debut at the iconic road track, competing in the Superbike class with a Honda CBR1000RR-R, supported by team Penz13. As well as Dunlop, three more Superbike riders will take to the track with the bikes of Rico Penzkofer&rsquo;s team, or rather David Datzer (who&rsquo;s just completed his first TT), Erno Kostamo and Italian Luca Gottardi, for a grid brimming with first-rate riders, among which the number 1 plate of current champion Didier Grams is a standout. Translated by Heather Watson Petrucci wildcard: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s an idea to develop. SBK is very attractive&rdquo;       

The 21-time TT winner will compete with a Honda at the iconic Finnish road circuit for the first time, as the track named in honour of Jarno Saarinen celebrates its 60th anniversary

Road Races, IRRC: Michael Dunlop set to debut at Imatra

        After the cancellation of the entire 2020 season and a delayed start this year, the 2021 season is finally underway for riders in the International Road Racing Championship, who battled it out at the extremely fast Belgian road circuit of Chimay. Maurer&rsquo;s double in Superbike  As for Superbike, both of the weekend's races were won by Lukas Maurer on the Kawasaki, although the victories were not without their difficulties. In both races, the Swiss rider had to fight all the way to the line before just getting the better of German rider Didier Gram, second on the BMW. Dutchman Joey Den Besten and Czech rider Marek Cerveny also reached the podium with a third-place finish apiece. Italian Stefano Bonetti rode the BMW to tenth place in the first race, but didn&rsquo;t take part in the second. Bian unstoppable in Supersport, Majola on the Supertwins podium  Considered the clear favourite in the Supersport class, Frenchman Pierre Yves Bian didn&rsquo;t disappoint and dominated both races aboard a Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R, beating Dutch rival Ilja Caljouw by a significant margin.&nbsp; Bian also took part in the first Belgian Twin Trophy race, triumphing with the Paton S1-R. Italy meanwhile played a starring role in the category dedicated to the twin-cylinders, Andrea Majola on the podium in both races, second and third with the Paton, and Stefano Bonetti scoring a double fourth with the new Aprilia RS660. The next 2021 IRRC round will be in Horice, in the Czech Republic, over the weekend of 14-15 August. Translated by Heather Watson Road Races: the Ulster GP aims to return for its centenary edition         

The first round of the 2021 International Road Racing Championship results in two Kawasaki doubles in Superbike and Supersport. Andrea Majola on the podium with Paton

IRRC: Lukas Maurer and Pierre Yves Bian triumph in Chimay

        With the entire 2020 season having been cancelled due to the pandemic and a delayed 2021 start following the removal of Imatra from the calendar, the International Road Racing Championship is finally ready to recommence this weekend, at the very fast Chimay road circuit in Belgium, the setting for the first of four stages to take place this year with a double race format. The round, known as the "Chimay Open Trophy", will be contested by various experts in the specialism, such as German Didier Grams and Czech rider Marek Cerveny, as well as several outsiders with experience of the Tourist Trophy and Macau, like Xavier Denis and Raul Torras Martinez. Stefano Bonetti ready to fly the Italian flag  The Superbike class will also field an Italian, or rather Stefano Bonetti, winner of the North West 200 two years ago as well as the fastest Italian ever to take on the Tourist Trophy. A Ducati will also take to the start line, piloted by Frenchman Wayne Bourgeais. The two IRRC Superbike races taking place during this opening Chimay event will both run on Sunday, race 1 getting underway at 12pm and race 2 at 5.20pm. Translated by Heather Watson Road Races: Norton and Warwick University join forces       

The Belgian road circuit will be the stage for the first round of the International Road Racing Championship, set to run over four events between now and September

IRRC: the 2021 season gets underway this weekend at Chimay

        The 2021 International Road Racing Championship will now not begin until July. The season should have got under way with the Dutch round of Hengelo, at the Varsselring, but the Covid-19 pandemic and restrictions introduced in The Netherlands make a May date impossible, the round therefore postponed until September. The first round of the IRRC will therefore take place in Finland, at the legendary city circuit of Imatra, followed by Chimay in Belgium, Horice in the Czech Republic, the aforementioned Hengelo, and then the grand finale in Germany, in Frohburg. The updated calendar  2-4 July: Imatra 23-25 July: Chimay 14-15 August: Horice 4-5 September: Hengelo 18-19 September: Frohburg Translated by Heather Watson Road Races: the 2021 edition of the TT is cancelled       

The Dutch round of the International Road Racing Championship, initially planned as the May season-opener, has been postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic

5 risultati per 'EN IRRC'

Road Races, IRRC: an unlucky debut for Michael Dunlop at Imatra

Road Races, IRRC: Michael Dunlop set to debut at Imatra

IRRC: Lukas Maurer and Pierre Yves Bian triumph in Chimay

IRRC: the 2021 season gets underway this weekend at Chimay

Road Races, IRRC: the Hengelo round is postponed until September