Michael Dunlop: Ballymoney rider aiming to push famous family name to 'next level'

Michael Dunlop says there is a "lot of pressure" in continuing the legacy of his legendary road racing family.

The Ballymoney rider is just one win behind his uncle Joey's Isle of Man TT record while his father Robert and brother William also enjoyed road racing success.

"The name is something the family's proud of and I'm proud of," he said.

"[When] you're from a sporting icon family you're always trying to push that to the next level."

He added: "And to do that I try my best and that's all I want to do, to try and make the Dunlop name as good as it should be from the people before me."

The Dunlop family has been hit by tragedy with Joey, Robert and William all losing their lives in racing accidents.

Michael was speaking at the Irish Motorcycling Awards, where he collected the King of the Roads award for 2023.

He won four races at the 2023 TT and his achievements there and in picking up a five-timer at the Armoy road races in July were recognised by his MD Racing outfit collecting the Team of the Year accolade.

The 34-year-old secured a first Superbike win at the Isle of Man event since 2018, including his fastest ever lap of the Mountain Course at 135.046mph.

He went on to win both Supersport races, recording the first-ever 130mph lap in the process, and also clinched a Supertwin success. Rival Peter Hickman also won four races, including the blue riband end-of-week Senior event.

"It was a good year, a bit disappointing at times. I felt the TT could have been better but I got back more to the form that I need to be in, back in a position where we should be. The whole team has pushed to be better.

"I felt there was more in us at the North West. I felt we should have been better than what we were. The Senior race at the TT [Dunlop finished third behind Peter Hickman and Dean Harrison] was nobody's fault but my own. I asked Steve [Hicken, team boss] to make a change and it wasn't for me.

"The Twin broke down and in the back of the workshop we found the problem. The Superstock race we got beat, Pete was riding better. That's the long and the short of it.

"It'd been a bleak couple of years on the Superbike but we came back fighting. The TT could have been better but it could have been a whole lot worse. We did a good job."

Dunlop is now on 25 TT victories but he is not thinking of surpassing his uncle's record as he looks forward to this year's event.

"It's a hard thing - everyone's looking at that but I'm not really looking at it, we're from different eras.

"It's generational. Joey's record is something completely different. I can only ride as hard as I can, do what I can and if I win more races, I win more. If I don't, I've won 25 and I'm privileged to follow in not only Joey's footsteps but my dad, who was something spectacular until his accident. I'm just trying to do the best I can.

"We're a massive road racing family. Everyone in racing knows who we are, what we've been through and I'm the last one who can push the Dunlop family name on.

"I'm racing not just for myself, but for the family. That's what it's all about. It's just an honour to be a Dunlop.

"Everything we have we have worked hard for. We have put our own money in and we're still working for that bigger goal.

"I just want to keep riding motorbikes and everyday I turn up I want to win races and if it's good enough it's good enough and if it's not it's not really.

"Regardless of how it works out we [Dunlop family] will always be thought after.

"Sadly I'm the last person trying to do that and I want to keep my Dunlop name to the point where it deserves to be - not because of me, because of them. All I can do is keep trying."