History was made in this thrilling second Sidecar Race of the 2018 Isle of Man TT races, which saw the first ever sidecar crew lap the Mountain Course in under 19 minutes.

As with the first sidecar race of 2018, this became a race of three pairs – Ben and Tom Birchall, who had won the earlier race, John Holden/Lee Cain, and Tim Reeves/Mark Wilkes.

Holden and Cain kicked off the race in first, but their advantage over the Birchalls was minimal, with Reeves and Wilkes less than a second adrift in third.

By lap two, the Birchalls had a quicker run, seizing the initiative to claw back first. Meanwhile, history had been made further back as Estelle Leblond became the first female driver to go above 110mph, alongside her partner Melanie Farnier.

As the race continued, the Birchall brothers pressed on at the head of the field, setting a new lap record of 119.250mph in the process. Holden/Cain and Reeves/Wilkes weren’t willing to give up without a fight though, with both crews going at a blistering pace and lapping at 117mph+.

The race went right down to the wire, with the winning duo taking home their fifth TT win in a row – their eighth in total.