2024 Manx Grand Prix: Five things to watch out for

The 37.75-mile Mountain Course on the Isle of Man will once again reverberate with the sound of racing motorcycles this month, when the 2024 Manx Grand Prix gets underway on 18 August.

This year marks the third for the revamped Manx GP, which was shortened from 14 days to nine in 2022 and saw the Classic TT event brought under the Manx GP umbrella.

Featuring a mix of classic machinery and contemporary bikes that compete to regulations more closely aligned to those used at the TT, there is guaranteed to be a lot of exciting action at the 2024 event.

We pick our five key storylines to look out for at this year’s Manx GP.

Michael Dunlop's Ducati redemption

Michael Dunlop comes to the 2024 Manx Grand Prix as the undisputed new king of the mountain, after his historic outing at the 2024 Isle of Man TT.

The Ulsterman notched up his 29th TT victory to overtake his legendary late uncle Joey as the most successful rider ever at the event.

Returning to the island this August to etch his name into more mountain course history, Dunlop will take part in two classes: the Classic Superbike and the Lightweight Manx GP.

The former, in which he is a five-time winner, sees him switch from Team Classic Suzuki machinery to a Ducati 916. Dunlop, of course, was meant to race a Ducati Panigale in the Superbike class at the TT two years ago before an 11th-hour deal with Paul Bird Motorsport fell through.

A class favourite at the Manx in 2024, Dunlop can - in some small way - find some proper closure to that particular episode with a win on the 916 in the Classic Superbike race.

Return of a classic class

This year’s Manx GP will see the return of a firm favourite class to the classic racing bill for the first time since 2019.

The Classic Junior race boasts an impressive roster of past winners, including Michael Dunlop and Michael Rutter. With only two former winners taking part in the 2024 edition, in the form of Dominic Herbertson and Jamie Coward, a solid entry should lead to an enthralling contest.

TT legend John McGuinness will contest the class for the first time aboard a Steadplan Honda CB350K4. The K4 Honda is the pick of machinery for the class, though the likes of Kawasaki and DKW will have some representation.

Last week, classic racing ace Glen English was announced as an entrant for the 2024 Manx GP and will set off from #16 on his Honda CB350K4.

Isle of Man comeback for a TT favourite

The 2024 Manx GP will bid a very welcomed return to Isle of Man competition for Lee Johnston.

The Northern Irishman suffered serious injuries in a crash at last year’s North West 200 and was forced to miss the TT that year too. Further injury setbacks forced him onto the sidelines for TT 2024 too.

But with his recovery moving forward and Johnston recently taking part in the Brands Hatch Supersport round of the British Superbike Championship, he will contest this year’s Manx GP.

He’ll take part in the Lightweight class and the Classic Superbike races on Reed Racing Honda machinery.

Johnston has enjoyed good success on the mountain course on classic machinery, winning the Lightweight Classic TT previously, as well as the Classic Senior Manx GP and Junior Classic TT.

While he’ll need some time to get back up to speed around the 37.75-mile course and shouldn’t be shouldering much expectation, simply having the 35-year-old back in action on the Isle of Man is a fantastic achievement.

A first for John McGuinness

At 52, TT legend John McGuinness is showing no signs of slowing down. After another strong TT in June with the works Honda squad, McGuinness returns to the Isle of Man for the Manx entered into two classes for the first time.

A regular at the event since 2013 under its Classic TT guise, McGuinness will once again race the Roger Winfield Paton in the Classic Senior contest.

McGuinness took his first win in that class in 2016 and added as second in 2018, before scoring a third in 2019. He still holds the class lap record of 113.342mph and finished second in the race last year.

He will also add the returning Classic Junior race to his schedule aboard a Steadplan Honda.

Home hero to put bitter TT behind him?

The Isle of Man TT is, understandably, the biggest event of the year for Manxman Conor Cummins. A 12-time podium finisher, he is always a firm favourite to battle at the top of the leaderboards.

But the 2024 TT proved to be a nightmare for Cummins, with bikes issues throughout practice week and in the races leading to him ending his TT campaign early and parting ways with Padgetts Racing.

It brought about speculation that he could be facing retirement, though he rubbished those claims.

Clearly still hungry for Mountain Course success, Cummins is making his first appearance on classic machinery on the island in five years at the 2024 Manx GP.

It marks his first at the Manx GP since it effectively absorbed the Classic TT back in 2022, though he was a regular in the latter event up to 2019. He will contest the Classic Senior race aboard a 500cc Steadplan Honda.

He raced in the class in 2013 and 2016, but retired on both occasions, but has enjoyed podium success in the Classic Superbike class before. He had initially intended to take part in that class this year, but is focusing solely on the Senior.