2 days ago
- Automotive
- Belfast Telegraph
Making Tandragee 100 return after long hiatus brings me back to my roots: Conor Cummins
Dunlop hasn't raced at Tandragee since 2013 when he was a runaway winner in both Superbike races.
However, the 33-time TT winner is going back to his Irish road racing roots once more only weeks after making more history on the Isle of Man where he won four more races to underpin his status as the most successful competitor ever around the notorious Mountain Course.
It has been a whirlwind June for the Ballymoney man, who was made an MBE in the King's Birthday Honours, following in the footsteps of his uncle Joey who was honoured with an MBE in 1986 before receiving an OBE 10 years later.
Dunlop began the road racing season with a double at the Cookstown 100 in Co Tyrone in April where he won the Supersport and Superbike races and set a new absolute lap record around the 2.1-mile Orritor course.
He continued in the same vein at the North West 200 in May, clinching a hat-trick with wins in the Superbike, Supersport and Superstock classes for his first victories on the north coast in eight years.
It was the ideal preparation for the TT where Dunlop increased his record from 29 wins to 33 after another four-timer.
He will be gunning for more success at Tandragee before returning to the Isle of Man in a few weeks to compete at the Southern 100.
Dunlop is a heavy favourite at Tandragee in the Supersport and Open races.
However, Ramsey man Cummins will be eager to put on a show for Ulster team Burrows Engineering/RK Racing.
Cummins will ride a BMW M1000RR and a Ducati Panigale V2 Supersport machine.
The 39-year-old has only raced at the event once before when he made his debut back in 2007.
After parting company from the Padgetts Honda team in 2024, Cummins took the chance to race at Armoy on an FHO BMW.
It was his first time at the Co Antrim race since 2013, but he enjoyed being back on the Irish roads and is now looking forward to another between-the-hedges fix at Tandragee.
'Whenever I did Armoy last year, I hadn't been to a national road race in donkeys, so whenever my circumstances changed, I said, 'Right, I need to go racing',' said Cummins.
'Thankfully, Bill (Kennedy) and all the club were fantastic to me, so I went and did it and I thought, 'I quite fancy doing more of this'.
'Over the winter, you get to hear of Tandragee and these other races being on, so it's back to the roots.
'It's nice from a sentimental angle to see Irish road races coming back and I've only been to Tandragee once before.
'Going back is quite a cool thing, and since there's been a total shift in my circumstances, I'm really thinking differently about other races and they're on my radar again after the TT.'
Cummins' best result at the TT in June was fifth in the second Superstock race, with his 131.5mph lap the fastest ever by a rider for John Burrows' team.
While Dunlop and Cummins are the two biggest names at Tandragee, southern Irishman Michael Sweeney could be the man to get closest to Dunlop.
The multiple national road racing champion will be out to make his presence felt on his MJR BMW and Yamaha R6 machines and will line-up as the favourite in the Supertwin class after his maiden podium at the North West 200 on his Aprilia in May.
Shaun Anderson from Banbridge is another leading light as he returns to his home road race.
Roads will be closed on Friday from 11am-7pm for practice. Two races are planned, with a non-Championship Supersport and Senior Support race scheduled after practice.
Roads close on Saturday at the earlier time of 9.30am for a 10-race programme and will open again by 7pm.
