interview - john mcguinness
mr Photos: Impact Images
John McGuinness is one of the most famous names in International Road Racing with an unbelievable 23 Isle of Man TT race wins. The mind of a TT racer is a mystery to us mere mortals, so we spent some time with “McPint” recently to find out what makes him tick, and just how he has managed to be so successful around the mountain course.
You’ve had one of the most successful careers of any racer either on the roads or circuits – what is at the core of your need to keep racing, what are those key elements that make you want to keep competing? JM A good package, with good stable people around me and good mechanics. People who are still willing to put a bit of faith in me, it’s not rocket science. I know racing is expensive, I know it’s stressful, a lot of people take huge chunks of time out of their lives to play a part in the team, I want to do the best I can for them. When all the i’s are dotted and the t’s crossed, it comes down to me to ride the bike. It’s weird for me, maybe I’ve had my arse wiped for me for too long and I’ve been lucky but I’ve always just enjoyed the camaraderie and the crack with the people around me, we have fun when we go racing. Regardless of the paddock and the talent, sometimes people in the team just don’t like each other and when that happens, things never work out well. There’s no point being in the team for the wrong reasons. When I have a good team and a good bike, that’s when I want to race forever. In many ways you are cast from the same clay as Joey Dunlop – both of you took a less than conventional view of training and the publicity demands of manufacturers and sponsors. Given that you rode with Joey tell us exactly what he meant to you?
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JM I always make sure I have enough energy left to climb on the top step and lift a trophy above my head, I’m not sure how much more a racer needs? I take the PR role seriously, but there’s an opinion that race fans want to hear what racers have to say from the heart rather than from a script. I always got the feeling Joey felt the same. When you’re a kid you follow your heroes and Joey was mine. Joey was the best and that meant everything to me, he was the guy with all the wins and five world championships. He was unassuming. He was hard to get to know and I was fortunate to get to know him a little bit more than lots of people and got closer to him than most. I didn’t realise at the time that he’d accepted me into his clan more than others. It took years after he was gone for me to realise how special that was and what it meant to me. You would always assume that somebody like that is invincible. The day he was awarded the freedom of his borough, he dropped me off at the B&B I was staying in and we had a few beers in us, I didn’t know that would be the last time I would ever see him alive. His last words to me were “thanks for coming, it means a lot” These were big words for a man like Joey to say and I never expected them to be the last to me from him. I watched him as a kid, ten, 11, 12 and 13 years old. Had his posters on my bedroom wall, he was just so cool and I followed his every step. Eventually I’d go on to be his teammate and it was the icing on the cake really. It was a bit of a whirlwind for me. Joey wouldn’t ride the Fireblade, then he tested the SP1 and decided to race it and all of a sudden we were teammates. I really do think it was meant to be. When I did my first ever TT, I ended up being asked by Frank Wrathall (he tuned everyone’s engines back then) if I could stick an
With 23 TT wins under his belt, McGuinness cuts a formidable, and confident figure
“I always make sure I have enough energy left to climb on the top step and lift a trophy above my head�
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interview - john mcguinness
extra bike in my van and drop it off to the owner in the paddock in Douglas when I got there. It was no bother to me so I said yes. It was Joey’s 125, still with a dent in the tank from where he’d had a crash at Tandragee on it a few weeks before and a bit dog eared around the edges. Seeing it in the van next to my bike was weird, I had to keep opening the doors and looking at it next to all my kit just to take it in. People say anyone can learn to draw, play the piano or even ride a motorcycle. If that’s true what elevates someone above being able to ride, to ride fast then to be in the top 5% of even racers? JM I’m not sure (laughs out loud). This question has been put to me in all kinds of ways over the years and my answer is still “I don’t know, you tell me”. Am I better, or have I just had better bikes? Have I had tunnel vision and just shut life as everyone else knows it out so that I only have to focus on just one thing. I know loads of other people who have lots of interests rather than just one. They like golf or gambling or football or whatever. I have no interest in anything else. For me it’s bikes and the TT. That’s it. I think working with good people helps those of us that are blessed with some natural talent to really shine. I used to spend a lot of time looking at my competitors while asking myself why they were doing better than me? Was it something in their head or just different gearing? Figuring those things out helped me understand where I could improve and do things differently. I put a lot of time and effort into learning the track at the TT. Did my homework and listened to a lot of people that had an opinion that I valued. When my mates were going to acid parties, I was doing my TT homework. Simple to me, maybe not to everyone else. Tell us about your inner dialogue when you are riding – what are you saying to yourself. Do you congratulate yourself on, say, a section of the TT course completed well or is it only you swearing at yourself as you think you could have got something better? JM While I’m racing the TT I’ve smelled weed, I’ve smelled burgers, sausages and beer. I’ve seen the smiles on people’s faces and I’ve seen the ferry pulling out of the harbour. The bottom line is when you’re on the bike your mind wanders for a split second, it might feel like seconds but it’s not, it’s fractions of a second. I’ve seen everything and take it all in but on the flip side, I’m ready for everything. Because I’m in a rhythm and I know the track and what’s coming up next, I know when that wheelie is coming or when the bike is going to try and rip itself out of my hands over that bump two corners up the road. The
After a long association with Honda, McGuinness has signed for Kawasaki
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“When my mates were going to acid parties, I was doing my TT homework.” rhythm is important. Of course I’ve been on the bike shouting at myself, screaming “Come on come on come on!”, but a good lap comes with composure, you can’t force it. I said to Becky (John’s lifelong partner and wife) in 2007 “watch this tonight, I’m going to nail that 130mph lap and set this place on fire!”. I went out there and screamed at myself the whole way round and did a 129.6. I was so disappointed. It felt like a 135mph lap. I think actions speak louder than words and when you’re absolutely dialled in and completely focused, you hit all your markers and a fast lap comes naturally. Once you’re in that mind space and you’ve got your head down, you can do a really fast lap and not know where the time has gone. When I did a 132.7mph lap I wasn’t shouting at myself, I just didn’t let anything else get in my head. Keep a clear head, go fast, show everyone what you can do and get the best out of yourself. That’s the best thing I can do with my head. The TT has long since lost world championship status yet continues to be a world famous event. Many people – including media – say the TT is dangerous. But as someone with more experience of it than many, how do you “defend” the TT against this negativity. JM I just tell them how it is. We live in a world now where somebody in a hi-vis vest is telling us we can’t do anything. We’re strangled everywhere, the TT is the only place in the world where you can be properly let loose on your bike to do what you want. Let’s look at the good times. Look at the history of the place, look at the riders that have come through and the records that have been broken. Look at the tyres that have been developed, the brakes and bits and pieces that nobody knows have been improved because of the TT. It has lots of positives but it’s easier to look at the negatives. In 2003 when we lost DJ I thought the job was done, the TT was on its arse and everyone wanted it banned. Same as in the mid 80’s when everyone thought that bikes were too fast for the place, ban this and ban that. F**king Hell, Adolf Hitler couldn’t even stop it. Two World Wars man! The TT is an institution, it’s about pushing boundaries. There’s no gun to anybody’s head, nobody is forced off the start line, and we do it because we want to. There are plenty of people standing at the bar talking about doing it, but only a handful actually do. It’s an amazing, amazing thing to do for those that are lucky enough to get there.
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interview - john mcguinness At 37 ¾ miles and so many corners etc. you will obviously have your favourite parts of the course but there may be other parts that you think could be altered/improved… which sections could be changed to make the course even better? JM None of it. We take it as it comes. I think it’s got its quirks and challenges. There are some sections where you can have a rest and others where you’ve got to be absolutely on point. I quite enjoy the bumpy bits now. These are the areas where some riders can be exposed and if you don’t have the perfect balance in your bike for the majority of your lap, that’s when the cracks in your lap are going to show. I’m incredibly lucky to have a corner named after me. When I’m dead, buried and long gone, it’ll still be McGuinness’, something I’m really proud of and I enjoy riding it because of that. Then you’ve got somewhere like Bray Hill and it’s terrifying for everyone. You start off with 24 litres of fuel and new tyres and you have no idea how the bike is going to react, you just get hold of it by the collar. Why change that? Look at Brandish, that’s been changed over the years and it’s still just a great big fast left hander. When it was first changed it was lovely and smooth. Thirteen years down the line from when that corner was changed and it’s full of bumps and is a completely different corner. Whatever corners there are have to be dealt with by everyone that’s racing on them. It doesn’t matter what lap times used to look like, whoever wins on the day is the winner, it’s that simple. It is what it is.
“My buzz comes from just being there, the people, the atmosphere and the buildup in the paddock”
One day – not yet – but one day you will have to take a step away from riding competitively, what will you do with your time and what is going to be the hardest thing to be denied… what single thing will hurt the most to not be able to experience. JM I tell you one thing, I’m not looking forward to that day where it all stops. I think if I’m in a position to be able to do a bit of classic racing and go do the odd track day to get it out of my system I’ll count myself lucky. I’ll tell you something else, I don’t buzz off the speed in particular, my buzz comes from just being there, the people, the atmosphere and the build-up in the paddock ahead of a race is what does it for me. Hearing others going on about that near death thing, I don’t get it. I’ve heard other racers buzzing saying “F**k me I nearly had a big one there!” With a mile wide smile on their faces. When I’ve nearly had a big one I don’t like it. I want to put that mistake right, not dwell on it and risk making it again. That said, I think the thing that I’ll miss the most is the winning, it’s got to be the winning. It’s an addiction, one that no racer ever wants to give up. Even being on the start line feels special. I don’t know what I’ll miss the most but I know this question is too hard to answer. The Ninja ZX-10RR has proven itself at the TT and in BSBSBK as being a good all round, durable racing package and is certainly not short on power but the TT for litre bikes is not so focused on maximum power. If you had the ZX-10RR and total control over the build what brief would you give the crew chief/ engineer.
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What other drink would the TT legend be pulling?
JM You want stability and reliability more than anything else. It’s all well and good having all the power in the world, but that means a worn out tyre and a worn out rider before you know what’s going on. When you’re sat on the start line on a bike that you know can finish the race and do it working with you rather than against you, that’s when you know you’re on the right bike. I’ve sat in that position and without wanting to sound like a dickhead, I knew that I wasn’t going to be beaten on that day. Simple as that. The bike could be painted pink and have a dildo hanging off the side, it doesn’t matter what the thing looks like as long as it’s been put together right and everyone in the team is happy with the job they’ve done.
Straight-talking, no-nonsense banter with Michael Rutter
Tell us about your “internal clock” – quite often you are on your own in a race for long periods. How do you manage your time and speed over, say, a six lap race? When do you carry on in the same rhythm and when does your head say “I can pull the pin for the next 10 miles”.
Ride to be: John’s next stint at the TT will be on a ZX-10RR
JM There are bits of a race where you’ve got to grit your teeth, grab the bike by the horns and really, really push, sometimes in sections where the bike wants to take complete control of what’s going on. You need to know when you can take a breath, when you can wriggle your toes and prepare for the next challenging section. My internal clock wasn’t really a feature in my plan because my plan was simple. I’d go like f**k from the start and if it didn’t work out I’d go to plan B. It’s a dead simple thing, in layman’s terms. A TT isn’t like a 25 lap short circuit race at Brands Hatch where you can see everyone you need to beat all the time and you can run at maximum for half an hour. You can’t max yourself out like that for an hour and forty five minutes at the TT. The demands are very different. You can get into a rhythm and do 130mph laps all day long but when you want 133s 134s and 135s, you have to dig a little bit deeper. Aside from everything else, those performances come from your heart, from somewhere deep inside you that you didn’t know you had until you ask yourself for it. It might sound a little bit ridiculous after the remark I made earlier but I imagine it’s a similar feeling to having a gun at your head. You’ve no choice but to do it. You have to be strong physically and mentally and you’ve just got to keep going. Naturally fans follow riders more than machines or manufacturers. This is the first time for you on a Kawasaki and already it has generated huge public and media interest. What will John McGuinness bring to the party, how will you make a difference to the Kawasaki racing story? JM I haven’t got a magic wand, all I can bring is John McGuinness and I’ve done alright over the years. I’ll bring my experience, my passion for racing and some fun to the racing. That’s all I can bring. It’s like me and the ZX-10RR have been running in parallel for years, one being loyal to a Japanese manufacturer for a very long time while Kawasaki was being just as loyal to their rider in James Hillier. Now is the time to come together and make what we’ve both got to offer really count. I’ve ridden wheel to wheel with the ZX-10RR and seen it perform with my own eyes, I know that the bike is good and I’m sure we’ll get on fine. I’ll bring my best shot to the party knowing that Kawasaki will do the same. n
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