A nine-year wait came to an end for Michael Dunlop as he took two victories on Thursday at the North West 200.
Michael Dunlop returned to the top step at the North West 200 after struggling at the event in recent years.
The 36-year-old took two victories across the three races on Thursday evening as he won the Fraser Homes Supersport Race and the Amici Ristorante Superstock Race.
It was the start of a new era for Dunlop as he competed in the Supersport race on a Ducati and the Superstock race on a BMW M1000RR.
"I rode hard for that I think I deserved it," Dunlop said after winning the Amici Ristorante Superstock Race.
"It was tough going, Davey [Todd] got away at the start, and I had to claw him back. I passed Dean [Harrison] into station, it was tight, but I needed to make inroads on Davey before he left.
"It has been a hard week, the crash this morning on the bike, that initial bike took me a minute to calm myself down and to understand I was not going to get the same issue again.
"I am really happy, the boys worked hard to get it fixed, she is a bit rough and ready so apologies to the sponsors, but she is going."
In the Milwaukee Superbike Race, Dunlop missed out on the podium as he finished in fourth place on the MD Hawk Racing BMW.
However, he admitted in the evening that he is having issues with his Superbike that he hopes to resolve before Saturday's races.
"We have a wee bit of an issue with the Superbike off the turns," Dunlop revealed.
"Hopefully, we can get talking to somebody at BMW in Germany to get that rectified. But I have proved tonight that I am still fast."
Dunlop had not won at the North West 200 since the Superbike race in 2016, but after a nine-year wait, he was still doubting himself after a crash on Thursday morning.
"It has been hard here because I have not won in a long time," he said.
"It has been a bit of a kick in the face, to now win again it is another weight off my shoulders. I have not come here fully fit in a long time, I crashed earlier today, and I thought 'this is going to be another sh*tshow'. But we have overcome it and won two races tonight."
