Conor Dunne is back in action at the Tour of Britain as part of the six-man JLT Condor team. The Irishman was one of the stars of the race in 2015 and based on his form back then he was selected for the UCI World road race championships in the US. His season hasn't been without its low points but he looks to be getting back to his best at the right time.
By Brian Canty
Conor Dunne is tackling the eight-day Tour of Britain with stage wins, breakaways and jerseys on his mind.
The JLT Condor man is in a strong six-man team alongside fast-men Russ Downing, Graham Briggs, Stephen Lampier, Ali Slater and Tom Moses.
They’re one of just four continental teams and as underdogs there’s no pressure on them to make the race – though that’s exactly what they’ll try and do.
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“I’m feeling alright, I freshened up well last week and looking forward to getting going,” said the elite Irish international.
Dunne finished in the bunch on the opening stage today, 161.6km from Glasgow to Castle Douglas won by Andre Greipel in a bunch sprint.
Of the Irish riders in the race, Ryan Mullen (Cannondale Drapac) was 54th, Nicolas Roche (Team Sky) was 61st, Dunne was 75th, Dan Martin (Etixx-QuickStep) was 83rd and Damien Shaw (An Post-Chainreaction) was 101st.
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All finished in the same time as the stage winner and race leader Greipel.
It’s set to be a gruelling week with inclement weather likely to greet the riders.
And the fact Dunne has done less racing miles than 2015 makes him something of an unknown.
“I’ve raced a little less than last year in the build-up to this and been a little more focussed on training,” he continued.
“I did a big two-week block in the Alps last month so hopefully that’ll pay off here.”
Dunne’s season hasn’t been easy with a bout of tonsillitis ruling him out of the national championships in June.
“After Korea I caught that so to miss the nationals was gutting. I had a rest and have been building back up ever since.
“This week I hope to be competitive, get in the breakaways and help out our GC/sprinters throughout the week.”
