One of the most interesting entries at the 2018 Isle of Man TT Races is the Suter two-stroke machine, which returns for the first time since 2016 with veteran Welshman Ian Lougher again on board.
Brainchild of Eskil Suter, the 580cc bike had an inauspicious Mountain Course debut two years ago but the Swiss engineer vowed to return with better and improved version and early indications suggest that's exactly the case.
Ten-time winner Lougher's best lap in 2016 was 121.494mph but on just his second lap of practice last night, he lapped at 121.049mph and he was certainly pleased with the improvements made.
"Eskil's made a lot of changes since 2016 and although I've only had three days of testing on the bike, one at Cremona in Italy and two at Alcaraz in Spain, it feels a lot better. The engine's improved in all areas being faster, stronger and more consistent in its power delivery. One of the biggest problems last time was the fuelling and I was on/off the throttle more than what I should have been but last night I didn;t have ny problems in that area.
"It was only the first night and there's a lot of work to be done on the chassis, as expected, as it was too stiff and with it being such a light bike, you feels the bumps a lot more than what you would on a Superbike. We've a lot of things to try so it;s good having two bikes here and to have pretty much matched my best 2016 lap on the first night of practice bodes well.
"In all the years I've been coming here, the flies were the worst I've ever known so we'll get a new screen fitted to alleviate that problem and there's a lot more potential in the bike this time around. We'll see what we can do but having retired at the end of 2013, I'm back here with three bikes so there's plenty of work going on."