[2] Downing was educated at Wales High School and Sheffield Hallam University, where he graduated in 1998 with a degree in Construction Management.

[3] He rode for the DFL-Cyclingnews-Litespeed team in 2006 and is the older brother of former British champion Russell Downing.

For the 2007 season, Downing rode for the original Rapha Condor team and focussed on the British Premier Calendar.

[2] Downing retired from racing after competing at the 2014 Sheffield Grand Prix, near his hometown of Rotherham.

[6] In January 2018 Downing was announced as DS and performance coach for the newly revived Holdsworth team.