Many of the biggest names in road-racing will converge on the Billown Circuit on the outskirts of Castletown, Isle of Man for the 2011 Steam Packet Southern '100' International Road Races next week.
2010 Solo Champion Ryan Farquhar and Sidecar Champions Klaus Klaffenböck & Dan Sayle will be out to defend their titles but no less than four former champions will be out to stop them, with many TT winners also in action.
Guy Martin and Cameron Donald each have victories to their name in recent years while Ian Lougher has five of them, and the Welshman is sure to be a contender once again this year. Michael Dunlop enters the event as the form man though after two high-profile victories on the roads.
At this year's TT, the Northern Irishman dropped out of the lead in the opening Supersport race but wouldn't be denied in the Superstock TT, winning by nearly 20 seconds. Dunlop also has a victory on the Billown circuit under his belt in the last month after winning at the Manx Telecom Post TT event.
Brother William Dunlop is also going to be in action, joined by the likes of Roy Richardson, Mark Buckley, John Burrows and 'Spirit of the TT Winner' Conor Cummins who all have experience on the 4.25mile circuit in the south of the island.
The Sidecar races look set to be a repeat of the battles at this year's TT between Klaffenböck & Sayle and the pairing of John Holden & Andy Winkle. The Austrian/Manx pairing dominated the first of the two TT Sidecar races in June but a broken water hose clip slowed them down on the final lap of race two, allowing Holden & Winkle to take their first TT win.
Aiming to join in on the battle for victory will be Ian Bell and his son Carl, who will be looking to add to their three Southern 100 titles. Four-time champion Nick Crowe will be looking for more success from his own team, led by Simon Neary, while Greg Lambert, Gary Bryan and Roy Hanks will also be in the thick of the action.
The meeting gets underway on Monday 11th July, with Roads Closing at 6.05pm until no later than 9.40pm. The event reaches a climax with 'Championship Day' on Thursday 14th July between 9.50am and 12.15pm then 1.00pm until 5.45pm at the latest. The event culminates with the unique Prize Presentation in Castletown Square on the evening of Thursday 14th July from 7.00pm to Midnight.
