Sheils clinched another double on the GSX-R1000 as he twice beat chief rival Derek McGee and Michael Sweeney to seal a double in the Open and Grand Final Superbike events.

After qualifying in second position, Derek pounced for the lead in the Open race on the final lap, pipping long-time leader McGee and hanging on to win by only five-hundredths of a second in a thriller.

The Grand Final proved a fitting finale as Sheils and McGee took turns at the front, but once again it was the Burrows Engineering/RK Racing rider who came out on top, with Sheils making a decisive move at the start of the final lap. He then set the fastest lap of the day at 105.164mph around the 2.2-mile course in Carrick-on-Suir to sign off on a high ahead of this weekend’s Armoy Road Races in County Antrim, where Tom Weeden will also be back in action for the Dungannon team.

“It was another excellent weekend for Derek and he had to work hard for the wins because there was nothing in it with Derek McGee and Michael Sweeney. McGee had claimed four pole positions in qualifying on Saturday and was strong as well, so it shows the kind of form Derek is in at the moment.

“That’s nine Superbike wins this season for Derek on the new bike and seven in a row. We’ve built the bike ourselves this year and we’ve found that bit of a window of performance now after a few teething issues at the start of the season. Everything is falling into place now there’s no doubt that Derek will be right in the mix at Armoy this weekend.

“The race was rained off last year and Derek missed out the year before, but he is on top form going into the weekend. Let’s hope that it might be possible for Michael Dunlop to be there this weekend as well at his home race but I’m not quite sure what his intentions are after he was injured at the Southern 100. Tom Weeden returns for us this weekend as well and it is nice to welcome him back into the team for the first time since the Isle of Man TT.”

“In was another great weekend and the racing was right. In the Open race, McGee was leading all the way to the last lap and he was riding really defensive and hugging the inside on the brakes, so it was hard to get past. I had to be creative with my passing moves and I managed to get around him on the outside on the long left-hander on the last lap and held him to the line. It was a good race and great for the crowds.

“The Grand Final was another ding-dong and I led it off the line, but McGee came past on the third lap. It was a creative move by him because I was doing the same as he did in the first race and defending my lines. He held it tight at the first corner on the last lap and I went a bit wider and squared it off, so I managed to get past because he lost a bit of drive going tight and it was another great race. I retired with a problem in the Supersport race when I was leading by about half-a-second on the first lap. It seems to be an ECU problem because the bike was losing power, but I didn’t want to take any risks and I just pulled off at the side of the road.”

Practice for the Armoy Road Races takes place on Friday from 12.30pm, with roads closing on Saturday, July 27, at 10am for the main race programme.