2022 Sportsbreaks.com Tour Series – Barking: race report and results
Ollie Peckover won the sixth round of the Sportsbreaks.com Tour Series by just 0.006s in a thrilling battle with Rory Townsend. Ellen McDermott took Team Boompod's first win, prevailing in a bunch sprint.
Ollie Peckover secured Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling’s first win of the 2022 Sportsbreaks.com Tour Series by the finest of margins as he out-sprinted WiV SunGod’s Rory Townsend by 0.006 seconds in Barking.
Ellen McDermott then took a hard-fought first win for Team Boompods in the women’s race, out-sprinting Stranraer winner Emma Jeffers on the run to the line.
Report
Men’s race
The penultimate men’s race of the year proved to be a thriller from start to finish, as the technical circuit of Clacton was swapped for a 1.2km rectangle with two sweeping corners – leading to a fast and ferocious race.
From the start, WiV SunGod grabbed things by the scruff of the neck, placing all five of its riders at the front of the leading group. There were a number of early forays from the team too few of them would at – notably Freewheel.co.uk Sprint leader Matt Bostock and Ollie Wood – with their otherwise high pave deterring other teams from trying to make their own breaks off the front.
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling and Wales Racing Academy were also busy at the front – the latter team seemingly refreshed after a few less eye-cart hung rounds, with William Truelove, William Roberts and Owain Roberts all prominent right at the front.
Like every other round of this year’s Series, the searing pace at the front served to thin the lead group out as the race progressed. Bostock, meanwhile, was successful in stretching out his lead in the Freewheel.co.uk sprints competition points, picking up 15 points on the night compared to the 9 of his nearest rival Harry Tanfield.
It was after the final Freewheel.co.uk intermediate sprint that the key moves of the race unfolded. First, Matt Gibson (WiV SunGod), Max Walker (Trinity Racing), Neil Phillips (Tekkerz) and Joe Holt (Wales Racing Academy) tested the resolve of the lead group as they attacked off the front with just under 50 minutes gone.
They lasted just two laps before they were pulled back in, but a trio of riders immediately countered.
Made up initially of Rory Townsend (WiV SunGod), Ollie Peckover (Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling, and Wales Racing Academy’s Joe Beckingsale, the counterattackers were soon joined by Walker who found a second wind to bridge the gap and join them at the front.
This time the attack stuck, aided in part by Townsend’s WiV SunGod teammates who controlled the pace of the chasing bunch and marked any attempts to bridge across to the leading quartet. This allowed the four to quickly build up more than half-a-minute’s gap over the pack behind.
With the winner certain to come from the break, the final lap was one of the cagiest of this year’s Sportsbreaks.com Tour Series. Townsend started the lap with a burst of power, a last test to see who still had energy in the legs, but by the time they navigated their way round to the long back-straight the riders were all together, each cautiously watching their rivals.
Eventually, as they turned the penultimate left corner, Walker launched an attack. Caught by Peckover as he entered the final straight, the Ribble rider quickly found himself head-to-head with Townsend, who came from third wheel to draw level with a phenomenal burst of speed.
Crossing the line absolutely side-by-side, the winner had to be determined by the photo finish – Peckover securing the team’s first win of the 2022 series by just 0.006 seconds.
His victory also helped secure the team win on the night for Ribble Weldtite, reducing their deficit to leaders WiV SunGod to just three points ahead of the Grand Final in Manchester.
Bostock’s win in the Freewheel.co.uk sprint competition means he extends his lead over Harry Tanfield to 18 points, with 20 still to play for in Manchester.
Women’s race
Chastened by Sammie Stuart’s (Team Brother UK – LDN) dominant solo victory last time out at Clacton, the penultimate women’s race of this year’s Sportsbreaks.com Tour Series was a much more nervy affair.
The early part of the race was punctuated with a flurry of exploratory attacks, none of which secured much traction. Team Boompods figured prominently in a lot of these early expeditions – an omen of things to come – with Monica Greenwood, Lucy Harris and Ellen McDermott all among those striking out at the front.
With a fierce battle raging for the Freewheel.co.uk sprints competition between leader Jo Tindley (Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Red Chilli Bikes p/b Heidi Kjeldsen) and second-placed Stuart, however, the early moves never got too much time at the front, with each rider keen to maximise their points tally at each intermediate sprints point.
Tindley took the first and second intermediate sprints ahead of Stuart to extend her five-point advantage and was then second in the third and final sprint – just behind of a hard-charging Frankie Hall (Loughborough Lightning).
Between those sprints, there was the odd attack here and there with Harris and Lee Boon (Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar) going off the front for a few laps. However, the first real move that showed promise was from Greenwood, as Team Boompods showed it was going all in to claim the squad’s first win in the Tour Series.
She was caught with four laps to go by a sizeable peloton. The tension rose as the laps ticked down from there, with riders jostling for position ahead of the almost inevitable bunch sprint.
When the bell finally came, it was Suzetta Guerrini (Jadan – Vive Le Velo) who made the first attack, looking to set up her teammate and Stranraer round winner Emma Jeffers.
However, as the race got towards the final two corners, it was getting frantic. First, Holly Breck (Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar) attacked from the inside of the fast penultimate corner before being swallowed up heading into the final corner.
It was coming out of that last sweeping left that McDermott launched her move, the former Irish Criterium Champion showing every ounce of her skill as she put in a sustained sprint to cross the line just ahead of the ever-rapid Jeffers – who claimed the fastest lap on the night, despite racing on junior gears. The remarkable Jeffers has not finished out of the top five positions in her Tour Series appearances so far.
Kate Richardson finished third for the Alba Development Team in a race where the Scottish team were on the front on a pretty regular basis – Sophie Langford chasing down attacks on numerous occasions.
A strong display from Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar, coming back from having to miss a couple of rounds through illness, secured them the team win on the night, but that was not enough to prevent Pro-Noctis securing the points they needed to seal their maiden Tour Series title with one round remaining.
Team leader Tindley won the Freewheel.co.uk sprint competition on the night, stretching her lead over Stuart to nine points.
Results
Men’s results
Individual classification
Rank
#
Name
Team
Laps
Time
Behind
1
6
Ollie Peckover
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
44
1:09:51.247
2
17
Rory Townsend
Wiv SunGod
44
1:09:51.253
+0.006
3
66
Max Walker
TRINITY Racing
44
1:09:51.630
+0.377
4
25
Joseph Beckingsale
Wales Racing Academy
44
1:09:52.530
+0.900
5
15
Matthew Bostock
Wiv SunGod
44
1:10:16.926
+24.396
6
9
Harry Tanfield
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
44
1:10:16.938
+0.012
7
4
Cameron Jeffers
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
44
1:10:16.961
+0.023
8
85
Kieran Riley
Team PB Performance
44
1:10:16.990
+0.029
9
52
Charles Page
Saint Piran
44
1:10:17.091
+0.101
10
21
Joe Holt
Wales Racing Academy
44
1:10:17.103
+0.012
11
18
Oliver Wood
Wiv SunGod
44
1:10:17.201
+0.098
12
58
Bradley Symonds
Saint Piran
44
1:10:17.576
+0.375
13
54
Leon Mazzone
Saint Piran
44
1:10:17.662
+0.086
14
98
Kiaan Watts
Global 6 Cycling
44
1:10:17.777
+0.115
15
33
Dan Barnes
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
44
1:10:17.935
+0.158
16
46
Neil Phillips
TEKKERZ
44
1:10:17.974
+0.039
17
26
Owain Roberts
Wales Racing Academy
44
1:10:18.190
+0.216
18
94
Ukko Peltonen
Global 6 Cycling
44
1:10:18.548
+0.358
19
84
Toby Jarvis
Team PB Performance
44
1:10:18.911
+0.363
20
116
Thomas Lowther
SRCT Muc-off
44
1:10:20.556
+1.645
21
29
William Roberts
Wales Racing Academy
44
1:10:50.808
+30.252
22
11
Benjamin Perry
Wiv SunGod
44
1:10:59.189
+8.381
23
27
William Truelove
Wales Racing Academy
44
1:11:11.936
+12.747
24
34
Freddie Scheske
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
40
1:05:28.952
+4 Laps
25
78
David Hird
Embark – BikeStrong
40
1:05:29.772
+0.820
26
76
Cai Davies
Embark – BikeStrong
40
1:05:30.067
+0.295
27
109
Seb Garry
Nopinz Motip Race Team
40
1:05:30.170
+0.103
28
74
Tom Couzens
Embark – BikeStrong
40
1:05:30.179
+0.009
29
55
William Bjergfelt
Saint Piran
40
1:05:30.219
+0.040
30
60
Jacob Vaughan
Saint Piran
40
1:05:30.268
+0.049
31
112
Oliver Maxwell
SRCT Muc-off
40
1:05:30.464
+0.196
32
121
Harrison Hunter
05/03
40
1:05:30.524
+0.060
33
43
Benjamin Tuchner
TEKKERZ
40
1:05:30.601
+0.077
34
31
Ben Chilton
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
40
1:05:30.638
+0.037
35
36
Mikey Mottram
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
40
1:05:30.658
+0.020
36
101
Matt Witts
Nopinz Motip Race Team
40
1:05:30.893
+0.235
37
38
Travis Bramley
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
40
1:05:31.007
+0.114
38
82
Jacques Coates
Team PB Performance
40
1:05:31.205
+0.198
39
2
Will Brown
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
40
1:05:33.071
+1.866
40
42
Jon Mould
TEKKERZ
40
1:05:33.299
+0.228
41
72
James Bevan
Embark – BikeStrong
39
1:05:29.858
+1 Lap
42
100
Xeno Young
Global 6 Cycling
39
1:05:30.261
+0.403
43
115
Elliot Barrat
SRCT Muc-off
39
1:05:30.920
+0.659
44
107
Dan Shoobridge
Nopinz Motip Race Team
39
1:05:31.788
+0.868
45
124
Rob McPherson
05/03
39
1:05:31.903
+0.115
46
80
James Satoor
Embark – BikeStrong
39
1:05:35.796
+3.893
47
106
Max Fleming
Nopinz Motip Race Team
38
1:05:35.444
+1 Lap
48
123
Harry Jukes
05/03
37
1:04:58.113
+1 Lap
49
99
Alex Williams
Global 6 Cycling
37
1:05:48.698
+50.585
50
103
Dave Roper
Nopinz Motip Race Team
37
1:05:55.554
+6.856
51
81
James Bentley
Team PB Performance
36
1:04:58.179
+1 Lap
52
88
Max Sillifant
Team PB Performance
36
1:05:55.552
+57.373
53
45
Kiam Bowerbank-Robinson
TEKKERZ
33
1:05:55.763
+3 Laps
DNF
14
Matthew Gibson
Wiv SunGod
42
1:07:09.050
DNF
114
Matthew Ellis
SRCT Muc-off
26
0:46:13.555
DNF
69
Blake Quick
TRINITY Racing
19
0:29:34.978
DNF
8
Charlie Tanfield
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
14
0:21:37.206
DNF
119
Luke Norris
SRCT Muc-off
11
0:18:42.567
DNF
130
Monte Guerrini
05/03
0
0.906
DNS
41
Alec Briggs
TEKKERZ
0
Team classification
Round
Rank
Team
Time
Points
1
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
3:30:25.146
10
2
Wiv SunGod
3:30:25.380
9
3
Wales Racing Academy
3:30:27.823
8
4
Saint Piran
3:30:52.329
7
5
Team PB Performance
3:32:40.227
6
6
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
3:34:23.484
5
7
TEKKERZ
3:34:28.264
4
8
Global 6 Cycling
3:34:30.466
3
9
Embark – BikeStrong
3:36:09.020
2
10
SRCT Muc-off
3:36:18.950
1
11
Nopinz Motip Race Team
3:38:03.032
0
12
05/03
3:43:15.163
0
Overall
Rank
Team
Points
1
Wiv SunGod
56
2
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
53
3
Wales Racing Academy
43
4
Saint Piran
40
5
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
30
6
TRINITY Racing
26
7
TEKKERZ
24
8
Team PB Performance
19
9
Embark – BikeStrong
15
10
Nopinz Motip Race Team
12
11
05/03
6
12
Global 6 Cycling
5
13
SRCT Muc-off
1
Sprint classification
Round
Rank
#
Name
Team
Points
1
15
Matthew Bostock
Wiv SunGod
15
2
9
Harry Tanfield
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
9
3
6
Ollie Peckover
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
8
4
18
Oliver Wood
Wiv SunGod
7
5
17
Rory Townsend
Wiv SunGod
6
6
66
Max Walker
TRINITY Racing
3
7
26
Owain Roberts
Wales Racing Academy
3
8
25
Joseph Beckingsale
Wales Racing Academy
2
9
98
Kiaan Watts
Global 6 Cycling
2
10
27
William Truelove
Wales Racing Academy
2
11
29
William Roberts
Wales Racing Academy
2
12
21
Joe Holt
Wales Racing Academy
1
Overall
Rank
#
Name
Team
Points
1
15
Matthew Bostock
Wiv SunGod
83
2
9
Harry Tanfield
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
65
3
16
Thomas Mein
Wiv SunGod
23
4
14
Matthew Gibson
Wiv SunGod
19
5
67
Luke Lamperti
TRINITY Racing
18
6
8
Charlie Tanfield
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
16
7
12
Jacob Scott
Wiv SunGod
15
8
6
Ollie Peckover
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
14
9
3
Finn Crockett
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
11
10
66
Max Walker
TRINITY Racing
9
11
19
Reece Wood
Wiv SunGod
9
12
26
Owain Roberts
Wales Racing Academy
8
13
61
Sam Culverwell
TRINITY Racing
8
14
13
Jim Brown
Wiv SunGod
7
15
18
Oliver Wood
Wiv SunGod
7
16
17
Rory Townsend
Wiv SunGod
7
17
54
Leon Mazzone
Saint Piran
7
18
69
Blake Quick
TRINITY Racing
5
19
1
Stuart Balfour
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling
5
20
30
Joshua Tarling
Wales Racing Academy
4
21
98
Kiaan Watts
Global 6 Cycling
4
22
85
Kieran Riley
Team PB Performance
3
22
52
Charles Page
Saint Piran
3
24
44
Noah Hobbs
TEKKERZ
2
24
29
William Roberts
Wales Racing Academy
2
24
27
William Truelove
Wales Racing Academy
2
24
25
Joseph Beckingsale
Wales Racing Academy
2
28
65
Oliver Rees
TRINITY Racing
1
28
21
Joe Holt
Wales Racing Academy
1
Women’s results
Individual classification
Rank
#
Name
Team
Laps
Time
Behind
1
41
Ellen McDermott
Team Boompods
34
1:02:28.956
2
40
Emma Jeffers
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
34
1:02:29.186
+0.230
3
124
Kate Richardson
Alba Development Road Team
34
1:02:29.254
+0.068
4
94
Caoimhe OBrien
Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar
34
1:02:29.608
+0.354
5
15
Jo Tindley
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
34
1:02:29.622
+0.014
6
84
Charlotte Broughton
AWOL OShea
34
1:02:29.721
+0.099
7
14
Isabel Darvill
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
34
1:02:29.781
+0.060
8
23
Sammie Stuart
Team LDN – Brother UK
34
1:02:29.824
+0.043
9
95
Lee Boon
Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar
34
1:02:29.925
+0.101
10
113
Sophie Holmes
Datalynx – Parenesis Cycling
34
1:02:29.970
+0.045
11
7
Sophie Lewis
CAMS – Basso
34
1:02:30.042
+0.072
12
123
Sophie Enever
Alba Development Road Team
34
1:02:30.069
+0.027
13
71
Frankie Hall
Loughborough Lightning
34
1:02:30.397
+0.328
14
99
Olivia Bentley
Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar
34
1:02:30.417
+0.020
15
55
Gaby Shaw
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
34
1:02:30.463
+0.046
16
16
Lucy Ellmore
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
34
1:02:30.555
+0.092
17
33
Suzetta Guerrini
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
34
1:02:30.605
+0.050
18
50
Lucy Harris
Team Boompods
34
1:02:30.666
+0.061
19
87
Liv Bent
AWOL OShea
34
1:02:30.747
+0.081
20
49
Monica Greenwood
Team Boompods
34
1:02:30.797
+0.050
21
58
Xan Crees
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
34
1:02:31.228
+0.431
22
122
Sophie Lankford
Alba Development Road Team
34
1:02:31.301
+0.073
23
10
Danni Shrosbree
CAMS – Basso
34
1:02:31.436
+0.135
24
92
Holly Breck
Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar
34
1:02:31.695
+0.259
25
121
Victoria Smith
Alba Development Road Team
34
1:02:31.741
+0.046
26
51
Amira Mellor
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
34
1:02:31.964
+0.223
27
5
Beth Morrow
CAMS – Basso
34
1:02:32.003
+0.039
28
25
Danni Watkinson
Team LDN – Brother UK
34
1:02:33.861
+1.858
29
85
Phoebe Martin
AWOL OShea
34
1:02:35.029
+1.168
30
86
Georgia Bullard
AWOL OShea
34
1:02:35.786
+0.757
31
98
Annamarie Lipp
Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar
34
1:02:35.852
+0.066
32
12
Bex Dew
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
34
1:02:35.873
+0.021
33
48
Emma Matthews
Team Boompods
34
1:02:35.938
+0.065
34
125
Beth Maciver
Alba Development Road Team
34
1:02:35.979
+0.041
35
81
Maddie Wadsworth
AWOL OShea
34
1:02:46.483
+10.504
36
3
Katie Scott
CAMS – Basso
34
1:02:51.525
+5.042
37
69
Holly Ramsey
Brother UK – Orientation Marketing
34
1:03:55.880
+1:04.355
38
4
Emma Edwards
CAMS – Basso
30
0:57:27.284
+4 Laps
39
104
Madeleine Gammons
Saint Piran WRT
30
0:57:27.558
+0.274
40
105
Gabriella Homer
Saint Piran WRT
30
0:57:27.934
+0.376
41
106
Gwenno Hughes
Saint Piran WRT
30
0:57:28.038
+0.104
42
118
Megan Anderson
Datalynx – Parenesis Cycling
30
0:57:28.067
+0.029
43
31
Polly Burge
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
30
0:57:28.152
+0.085
44
37
Louise Scupham
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
30
0:57:28.309
+0.157
45
47
Keri Parton
Team Boompods
30
0:57:28.420
+0.111
46
101
Emily Chilton
Saint Piran WRT
30
0:57:28.450
+0.030
47
111
Nicola Soden
Datalynx – Parenesis Cycling
30
0:57:28.842
+0.392
48
56
Maddy Nutt
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
30
0:57:29.223
+0.381
49
65
Ellen Bennett
Brother UK – Orientation Marketing
29
0:57:27.447
+1 Lap
50
74
Flora Knight
Loughborough Lightning
29
0:57:29.307
+1.860
51
112
Isabella Johnson
Datalynx – Parenesis Cycling
29
0:57:29.326
+0.019
52
67
Hope Inglis
Brother UK – Orientation Marketing
29
0:57:30.082
+0.756
53
39
Kirstie Drakeford
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
29
0:57:30.786
+0.704
54
28
Lauren Higham
Team LDN – Brother UK
29
0:57:31.712
+0.926
55
119
Laura Cheesman
Datalynx – Parenesis Cycling
29
0:57:38.298
+6.586
56
18
Poppy Thompson
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
28
0:57:18.992
+1 Lap
57
75
Roisin Lally
Loughborough Lightning
28
0:58:11.580
+52.588
58
68
Ellen Inglis
Brother UK – Orientation Marketing
28
0:58:14.678
+3.098
DNF
57
Sam Fawcett
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
17
0:33:50.222
DNF
107
Elizabeth Sanders
Saint Piran WRT
13
0:24:28.430
DNF
64
Maddy Verdegal
Brother UK – Orientation Marketing
8
0:14:38.884
Team classification
Round
Rank
Team
Time
Points
1
Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar
3:07:29.950
10
2
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
3:07:29.958
9
3
Team Boompods
3:07:30.419
8
4
Alba Development Road Team
3:07:30.624
7
5
CAMS – Basso
3:07:33.481
6
6
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
3:07:33.655
5
7
AWOL OShea
3:07:35.497
4
8
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
3:10:07.697
3
9
Team LDN – Brother UK
3:12:30.520
2
10
Datalynx – Parenesis Cycling
3:12:46.467
1
11
Saint Piran WRT
3:15:22.667
0
12
Brother UK – Orientation Marketing
3:18:42.638
0
13
Loughborough Lightning
3:20:34.188
0
Overall
Rank
Team
Points
1
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
57
2
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
43
3
Team Boompods
39
4
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
32
5
Alba Development Road Team
30
6
CAMS – Basso
29
7
Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar
26
8
Team LDN – Brother UK
26
9
Datalynx – Parenesis Cycling
17
10
Loughborough Lightning
12
11
Saint Piran WRT
10
12
AWOL OShea
8
13
Brother UK – Orientation Marketing
1
Sprint classification
Round
Rank
#
Name
Team
Points
1
15
Jo Tindley
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
15
2
23
Sammie Stuart
Team LDN – Brother UK
11
3
71
Frankie Hall
Loughborough Lightning
9
4
40
Emma Jeffers
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
9
5
41
Ellen McDermott
Team Boompods
5
6
124
Kate Richardson
Alba Development Road Team
3
7
16
Lucy Ellmore
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
3
8
94
Caoimhe OBrien
Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar
2
9
113
Sophie Holmes
Datalynx – Parenesis Cycling
2
10
49
Monica Greenwood
Team Boompods
1
Overall
Rank
#
Name
Team
Points
1
15
Jo Tindley
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
74
2
23
Sammie Stuart
Team LDN – Brother UK
65
3
40
Emma Jeffers
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
37
4
71
Frankie Hall
Loughborough Lightning
32
5
7
Sophie Lewis
CAMS – Basso
24
6
16
Lucy Ellmore
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
20
7
124
Kate Richardson
Alba Development Road Team
18
8
33
Suzetta Guerrini
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
13
9
77
Sophie Coldwell
Loughborough Lightning
13
10
1
Megan Barker
CAMS – Basso
11
11
41
Ellen McDermott
Team Boompods
9
12
113
Sophie Holmes
Datalynx – Parenesis Cycling
8
13
54
Charlotte Berry
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
5
13
48
Emma Matthews
Team Boompods
5
15
51
Amira Mellor
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
4
16
84
Charlotte Broughton
AWOL OShea
3
17
92
Holly Breck
Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar
3
17
34
Beth Harley- Jepson
Jadan – Vive Le Velo
3
17
13
Corinne Side
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
3
20
94
Caoimhe OBrien
Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar
2
20
22
Lucy Lee
Team LDN – Brother UK
2
20
118
Megan Anderson
Datalynx – Parenesis Cycling
2
23
53
Becks Durrell
Team Spectra Wiggle p/b Vitus
1
23
5
Beth Morrow
CAMS – Basso
1
23
49
Monica Greenwood
Team Boompods
1
23
11
Amy Gornall
Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Redchilli Bikes
1
Featured photo: Simon Wilkinson/SWpix.com – 21/05/2022 – Cycling – Sportsbreaks.com Tour Series – Round 6: Barking, East London, England – Men’s Race.
Ollie Peckover secured Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling’s first win of the 2022 Sportsbreaks.com Tour Series by the finest of margins as he out-sprinted WiV SunGod’s Rory Townsend by 0.006 seconds in Barking.
Ellen McDermott then took a hard-fought first win for Team Boompods in the women’s race, out-sprinting Stranraer winner Emma Jeffers on the run to the line.
Report
Men’s race
The penultimate men’s race of the year proved to be a thriller from start to finish, as the technical circuit of Clacton was swapped for a 1.2km rectangle with two sweeping corners – leading to a fast and ferocious race.
From the start, WiV SunGod grabbed things by the scruff of the neck, placing all five of its riders at the front of the leading group. There were a number of early forays from the team too few of them would at – notably Freewheel.co.uk Sprint leader Matt Bostock and Ollie Wood – with their otherwise high pave deterring other teams from trying to make their own breaks off the front.
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling and Wales Racing Academy were also busy at the front – the latter team seemingly refreshed after a few less eye-cart hung rounds, with William Truelove, William Roberts and Owain Roberts all prominent right at the front.
Like every other round of this year’s Series, the searing pace at the front served to thin the lead group out as the race progressed. Bostock, meanwhile, was successful in stretching out his lead in the Freewheel.co.uk sprints competition points, picking up 15 points on the night compared to the 9 of his nearest rival Harry Tanfield.
It was after the final Freewheel.co.uk intermediate sprint that the key moves of the race unfolded. First, Matt Gibson (WiV SunGod), Max Walker (Trinity Racing), Neil Phillips (Tekkerz) and Joe Holt (Wales Racing Academy) tested the resolve of the lead group as they attacked off the front with just under 50 minutes gone.
They lasted just two laps before they were pulled back in, but a trio of riders immediately countered.
Made up initially of Rory Townsend (WiV SunGod), Ollie Peckover (Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling, and Wales Racing Academy’s Joe Beckingsale, the counterattackers were soon joined by Walker who found a second wind to bridge the gap and join them at the front.
This time the attack stuck, aided in part by Townsend’s WiV SunGod teammates who controlled the pace of the chasing bunch and marked any attempts to bridge across to the leading quartet. This allowed the four to quickly build up more than half-a-minute’s gap over the pack behind.
With the winner certain to come from the break, the final lap was one of the cagiest of this year’s Sportsbreaks.com Tour Series. Townsend started the lap with a burst of power, a last test to see who still had energy in the legs, but by the time they navigated their way round to the long back-straight the riders were all together, each cautiously watching their rivals.
Eventually, as they turned the penultimate left corner, Walker launched an attack. Caught by Peckover as he entered the final straight, the Ribble rider quickly found himself head-to-head with Townsend, who came from third wheel to draw level with a phenomenal burst of speed.
Crossing the line absolutely side-by-side, the winner had to be determined by the photo finish – Peckover securing the team’s first win of the 2022 series by just 0.006 seconds.
His victory also helped secure the team win on the night for Ribble Weldtite, reducing their deficit to leaders WiV SunGod to just three points ahead of the Grand Final in Manchester.
Bostock’s win in the Freewheel.co.uk sprint competition means he extends his lead over Harry Tanfield to 18 points, with 20 still to play for in Manchester.
Women’s race
Chastened by Sammie Stuart’s (Team Brother UK – LDN) dominant solo victory last time out at Clacton, the penultimate women’s race of this year’s Sportsbreaks.com Tour Series was a much more nervy affair.
The early part of the race was punctuated with a flurry of exploratory attacks, none of which secured much traction. Team Boompods figured prominently in a lot of these early expeditions – an omen of things to come – with Monica Greenwood, Lucy Harris and Ellen McDermott all among those striking out at the front.
With a fierce battle raging for the Freewheel.co.uk sprints competition between leader Jo Tindley (Pro-Noctis – Rotor – Red Chilli Bikes p/b Heidi Kjeldsen) and second-placed Stuart, however, the early moves never got too much time at the front, with each rider keen to maximise their points tally at each intermediate sprints point.
Tindley took the first and second intermediate sprints ahead of Stuart to extend her five-point advantage and was then second in the third and final sprint – just behind of a hard-charging Frankie Hall (Loughborough Lightning).
Between those sprints, there was the odd attack here and there with Harris and Lee Boon (Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar) going off the front for a few laps. However, the first real move that showed promise was from Greenwood, as Team Boompods showed it was going all in to claim the squad’s first win in the Tour Series.
She was caught with four laps to go by a sizeable peloton. The tension rose as the laps ticked down from there, with riders jostling for position ahead of the almost inevitable bunch sprint.
When the bell finally came, it was Suzetta Guerrini (Jadan – Vive Le Velo) who made the first attack, looking to set up her teammate and Stranraer round winner Emma Jeffers.
However, as the race got towards the final two corners, it was getting frantic. First, Holly Breck (Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar) attacked from the inside of the fast penultimate corner before being swallowed up heading into the final corner.
It was coming out of that last sweeping left that McDermott launched her move, the former Irish Criterium Champion showing every ounce of her skill as she put in a sustained sprint to cross the line just ahead of the ever-rapid Jeffers – who claimed the fastest lap on the night, despite racing on junior gears. The remarkable Jeffers has not finished out of the top five positions in her Tour Series appearances so far.
Kate Richardson finished third for the Alba Development Team in a race where the Scottish team were on the front on a pretty regular basis – Sophie Langford chasing down attacks on numerous occasions.
A strong display from Torelli – Cayman Islands – Scimitar, coming back from having to miss a couple of rounds through illness, secured them the team win on the night, but that was not enough to prevent Pro-Noctis securing the points they needed to seal their maiden Tour Series title with one round remaining.
Team leader Tindley won the Freewheel.co.uk sprint competition on the night, stretching her lead over Stuart to nine points.
Results
Men’s results
Individual classification
Team classification
Round
Overall
Sprint classification
Round
Overall
Women’s results
Individual classification
Team classification
Round
Overall
Sprint classification
Round
Overall
Featured photo: Simon Wilkinson/SWpix.com – 21/05/2022 – Cycling – Sportsbreaks.com Tour Series – Round 6: Barking, East London, England – Men’s Race.
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