Senior Manx Grand Prix winner Caomhan Canny ready to 'level up' in debut at North West 200 and Isle of Man TT with Scott Racing
Senior Manx Grand Prix winner Caomhan Canny is ready to “level up” as he looks ahead to his debut at the North West 200 in May and the Isle of Man TT.
The Donegal man will make the step up to race at the two biggest road races on the calendar for the first time after joining Northern Ireland team Scott Racing.
He will ride a 1000cc Aprilia in the Superbike and Superstock classes, an Aprilia 660 Supertwin and a Suzuki in the Supersport races.
Canny edged out Scotsman Chris Cook in a thrilling Senior race at the 2025 Manx Grand Prix on the final lap, winning the feature race of the festival by only half-a-second.
He accepts that the weight of expectation on his shoulders will be less this year, but Canny is still aiming to make his mark and is determined to capitalise on the opportunity to ride for Trevor Scott’s team.
“I would be the hardest critic of myself and I always look at what I should be doing and what I shouldn’t be doing,” he said. “The pressure is off as such for this year because you’re levelling up and going to ride against a different calibre of rider.
“A small bit of pressure is off but I still want to go well and as a racer; I have my own goals and achievements in mind.”
Canny defied the odds last year to race at the Manx Grand Prix following a big crash at the Tandragee 100, breaking his pelvis and dislocating his shoulder.
He feared he would be unable to continue after the opening night of practice at the Manx Grand Prix, but Canny’s perseverance paid off as he went on to claim a dream victory in the Senior finale.
“I don’t want no more Tandragee incidents! It was tough and it might look all good and glitz and glam because of the results, but there was an evening after the first night of practice when me and the wife were sitting in the caravan I thought that our Manx Grand Prix was over,” he said.
“To come back from injury was a huge thing and the support network behind me was exactly why it happened.”
Last week, Canny joined fellow North West 200 newcomers on the north coast for an induction day, which included a tour of the 8.9-mile course under the guidance of multiple winner Steve Plater.
“It was a great day and it was good to see everybody, Mervyn [Whyte, Event Director], Stanleigh [Murray, Clerk of the Course], Steve [Plater] and everybody involved, and I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
“I definitely feel now is the time, with going to the TT this year and getting the chance to ride for Trevor. Fair play to him for giving me that opportunity and I’m very grateful for it, and with that behind me I feel I have a team that’s capable and is going to help me with my introduction to the North West.
“I have no expectations, I went to go, I want to enjoy myself as I did at the Manx Grand Prix in 2024.
“I just want to go there and get to know the place as best I can and then push on after that because hopefully we’ll have a lot of years’ racing ahead of us yet.”
Canny is also set for a full campaign of national road racing, with the sport returning in the Republic of Ireland for the first time since 2022, and a trip to the Isle of Man in July for the Southern 100 at Billown.