Peter Hickman scored a surprise third win of the 2023 Isle of Man TT after being promoted into the lead on the final lap in a race strewn with high-profile retirements, most notably the record-chasing Michael Dunlop.

Just hours after smashing the outright lap record around The Mountain in the earlier Superstock TT race, Hickman was celebrating once again as he safely steered his PHR Yamaha R7 to the flag amid drama around him.

Indeed, most eyes were back on Dunlop in the wake of his dominant victory in the first Supertwins race, not least because a win here would be enough to bring him level with Joey Dunlop's all-time tally of 26 wins.

However, after opening up a comfortable lead initially, technical issues would strike his Paton, forcing him to pull up at the bottom of the mountain pass. It means he can't exceed his uncle's record at this year's TT, but can still match it by winning the Senior TT finale tomorrow.

His exit promoted Mike Browne into a stunning lead, the Burrows Engineering rider grasping his opportunity with both hands days after taking his first TT podium in race one. Pulling away from Hickman, it appeared Browne was on course to become the newest winner at the TT, only for his Paton to also hit problems coming into the last lap.

Their exit, coupled with an early DNF for Jamie Coward, left Hickman in a lonely lead, which he protected to the flag to collect his 12th career TT win.

From record breaking fast to slow and steady...

The destination may have been the same, but the circumstances that led to Hickman striding onto the podium in both the Superstock TT and Supertwins TT really couldn't have been more different.

Fresh from becoming the first rider to lap the Mountain Course at an average speed in excess of 136mph, expectations were certainly more modest in a Supertwins TT context.

A winner in the class last year, Hickman's decision to retire his Paton in favour of trialling a new Yamaha R7 package was a risk that didn't appear to be paying off as a lack of testing left him a distant fourth in race one.

On the levelest playing field, it would have been the same result today but for Lady Luck to shine on him while hurling black cats at his closest rivals.

Indeed, on pure pace, Dunlop looked to be a shoe-in, so much so the placards and banners celebrating his TT win were being readied in advance. However, if Dunlop was ready for history, his Paton wasn't, the S1-R croaking before reaching The Mountain just as it did twelve months ago.

Bitter disappointment for Dunlop, it ends his hopes of moving clear on the all-time list with 27 wins, meaning 26 is the most he can hope for for this year... just the little matter of beating a confidence gaining Hickman in the Senior TT on Saturday.

Nevertheless, the end of one big story gave rise to another as Mike Browne - a rising star of road racing - took up the baton at the front of the field, his hopes having already been boosted by Jamie Coward coming to a halt shortly after the start to scupper his hopes too.

With his second place finish in race one marking his maiden TT podium, Browne looked well on course to end week as the event's newest winner, pushing his Burrows Engineering Paton S1-R into a growing advantage over Hickman.

However, after extending his margin out to 15secs coming into the final lap, the Paton cried enough, forcing him to pull up and endure a forlorn walk back to the paddock to face his gutted team.

His exit thus cleared the path for Hickman to turn record-breaking SSTK win into a slow and steady Supertwins triumph, bizarrely earning the TT specialist an unusual 'surprise winner' status.

The shake up in the final classification carried on behind Hickman too with Dominic Herbertson's bid for a first TT podium ruined by retirement on the final lap while running second.

His exit though promoted two new names onto the TT podium for the first time with Pierre-Yves Bian capitalising to take a fine second place, a year after just being pipped to third, while Josh Brookes achieved a landmark third on the Dafabet Kawasaki, just two seconds shy of the Frenchman ahead.

With other high profile retirees including Paul Jordan and Michael Rutter, Stefano Bonetti brought his Paton home for fourth, ahead of fifth place man Rob Hudson, while there were more personal bests to be savoured for Baz Furber in sixth, Michael Evans in seventh, Francesco Curing in eighth and Michal Dokoupil in ninth.

Finally, there was a fine tenth place result for Michael Russell, which not only signalled his best ever finish, but comes as part of his quest to become the first rider to compete in all ten races at the TT

2023 Isle of Man TT - Supertwins TT Race 2 FULL RESULTS