THE decision has been made to scrap the first practice of TT 2011.
An untimed practice had been provisionally due to be held on Saturday, May 28 next year which would have been the first day of the TT fortnight.
But, in a bid to cut costs for teams and riders, organisers have decided to begin the event on the following Monday - May 30 - instead.
Next year 100 years of racing on the Mountain Course will be celebrated.
Geoff Corkish MHK, political member for Isle of Man Tourism said: "We have listened to comments from a number of teams and riders, both from the top of the grid as well as further down the field, as well as sponsors and other commercial partners and the overwhelming feedback is that we need to help them to reduce their costs during the tough economic climate.
"We have therefore decided to remove the first practice to reduce the time that they spend on the Island, whilst maintaining arrangements within the existing road closure schedule to maintain the amount of track time available for qualification.
"We have a thrilling event and programme lined up for 2011 and are looking forward to welcoming fans from around the world to join the experience and to help us celebrate the centenary and anniversaries as well as seeing history in the making."
The 2011 calendar has been announced by the Department of Economic Development, promoters of the TT.
It will broadly feature the same programme as the previous seven years.
This will include a Superbike race and the first Sidecar race on Saturday, June 4, Supersport Race 1 and the Superstock Race on Monday, June 6, the second Sidecar and second Supersport Race on Wednesday, June 8 and the Blue Riband Senior Race on Friday, June 10.
For the third consecutive year electric bikes will also compete in the TT Races, with the TT Zero Race scheduled to take place on Wednesday, June 8.
The Isle of Man Government has again offered a £10,000 prize to the first team to record a 100mph lap around the course.
The prestigious mark was first recorded on a conventional machine in 1957 and has not yet been achieved by an electric bike, although the American team MotoCzysz from Portland, Oregon, clocked an average lap speed of 96.82mph in the 2010 TT Zero Race.
While the practice for Saturday, May 28 has been scrapped, organisers say race fans will still be able to enjoy the excitement of road racing in the Isle of Man on Friday, May 27 and Saturday, May 28 at the Southern 100 Club’s pre-TT Classic Race meeting which features a number of TT riders racing in a mass start on the famous Billown Circuit in the south of the Island.
The 2011 TT meeting will also feature some high profile celebrations for the 2011 Mountain Course centenary as well as a definitive programme of events to commemorate Yamaha’s 50th anniversary of competing in the Isle of Man.
This year's TT featured a number of the closest races in the event's history with three seconds or less deciding five of the seven races.
History was made when all five solo races were won by Padgett's Honda rider Ian Hutchinson.
