JOEY DUNLOP, the winner of yesterday's 250cc Lightweight TT race, has decided against quitting the 90th Anniversary Isle of Man festival. The 45 year old Ballymoney publican was ready to bring an early end to his participation in this year's festival after a gruelling ride into sixth place in Saturday's TT Formula One race.

But Dunlop's fourth consecutive victory in the 250cc TT, which extended his record on the island to 22 victories in the last year, changed his mind.

"It's a bit different for me now compared to Saturday night when I was ready to quit," he said. "The Formula One race took it out of me and I really felt my age. Now, I am ready for more wins.

"I am really chuffed to have won, it was good and I enjoyed it. It was hard work for the first couple of laps, but then it settled down."

In the early stages of the race, his fellow Ulsterman Phillip McCallen set the pace. But things started going wrong for the Formula One race winner when he lost the lead with a lengthy pit stop.

Dunlop charged out of the pits in the lead as McCallen crashed out at the notorious Quarry Bends section. He walked away from the 150 mph crash shaken, but is expected to race again later in the week.

Dunlop won the race by 47 seconds, at an average speed of 115.59 mph, while Cardiff's Ian Lougher came second, 1.4 seconds clear of Heysham's John McGuinness.

Rob Fisher, partnered by Rick Long, made up for Saturday's disappointment by taking his fifth Sidecar TT victory, winning by 64 seconds from Tom Hanks and Steve Wilson.

Roy Hanks and Phillip Biggs, the winners of Saturday's race, came in fourth, just adrift of Ian Bell and Neil Carpenter.