Conor Cummins: Fastest Ever Manxman
In the second interview recorded during this year’s Manx Grand Prix, Chris Pritchard and Steve Plater are joined by the fastest Manxman around the Mountain Course, Conor Cummins.
As he unusually didn’t have his sights set on the TT from the get go, the racer looks back at his career beginnings starting in the circuit races before showing his strengths at the North West 200 and setting off around the mountain course at just 20 years old. He also explains why he doesn’t like being the first on the road and tells a frustrating story of one race’s slow start, caused by an accidental red flag that had him drop his guard for a second and forced to make up the time driving.
As one of the few riders who has been driving round the mountain course his whole life, Conor talks about why that doesn’t actually give him that much of an advantage. The trio also discuss the pros and cons of this year's event, getting into warm up laps, how the conditions of the course played into lap speeds, why he thinks it's the best he’s ever raced and how riding more on the circuits might help him finally reach the top of the podium.
Despite his successes on a bike, talk also turns to the infamous crash faced by Conor at the 2010 event and his investigations into what might have happened to cause it. After hopping back onto a bike following only 9 months of rehab, the Padgetts racer talks about that first TT back and why he was essentially hanging onto his machine with one arm.
The owner of Conrod’s, Conor divulges how much influence his racing mindset has on his businesses alongside how his family and team help him to achieve so much alongside his racing career. The family theme continues with Chris asking Conor about his long relationship with Padgetts and why he feels they have worked so well together.
Asked about how other racers influence his decisions, the Manxman admits that he doesn’t pay much attention to what others are doing and races to win everytime, though he describes the incredibly successful Peter Hickman as ‘everyone’s benchmark’.
The podcast also sees Chris repeatedly, if not on purpose, remind Conor of his missing first place at the TT with the racer saying he just needs to find those places to make up that extra bit of time, describing what he needs to do to win as just being a ‘little bit faster.
You can either watch the full Podcast by subscribing for free to TT+ or listen to The TT Podcast through your favourite podcast provider.
Listen now to Part One: Local Hero
Listen now to Part Two: Fastest Ever Manxman
