Halfords Tour Series: Round 3 (Portsmouth)

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June 1st, 2010; Event Press Release | Motorpoint – Marshalls Pasta take the lead

Ian Bibby takes the win as Rapha – Condor – Sharp endure a night to forget

Ian Bibby shows how versatile he is with victory in round 3 of the Halfords Tour Series. Photo: Halfords Tour Series / JoolzeDymond.com

Motorpoint – Marshalls Pasta snatched the lead of The Halfords Tour Series in Portsmouth, placing three of their riders in the top eight positions to slip into the orange leader’s jerseys, with Ian Bibby taking the individual win.

Despite the whole team being delayed by a crash, with Durham winner Malcolm Elliott the main victim, the Motorpoint – Marshalls Pasta team still took control of the race and with it the Series, in part helped by the demise of former leader’s Rapha – Condor – Sharp, who lost star man Dean Downing to a puncture with just two laps remaining.

The 1.3km Portsmouth circuit was as hard as the Durham circuit had been tough, meaning the peloton was flat out from the flag, with a long line of riders soon forming as the train lapped at around the 1 minute 10 second mark. With earlier rain holding off and the circuit beginning to dry out, various teams took the opportunity to set the pace at the front of the speeding pack.  

Such was the speed of the racing that it was impossible for any attacks to gain ground, ensuring the peloton circulated as on e until a crash on the lap of the first Boardman Bikes Sprint Competition split the field. Caught out by a pinch in the peloton was Elliott, who retired with injuries to his hand and shoulder, as Evan Oliphant led the front half of the field across the line at the sprint, followed by Jon Mozley and a fast charging Liam Holohan.

For a while, the peloton remained fractured as riders took their time to regroup, and that was how it stayed for the remainder of the race, save for brief attacks by the Pendragon – Le Col – Colnago duo of Casey Munro and Yanto Barker. The fast nature of the course though prevented anyone from soloing to victory, as Endura Racing set a fierce pace at the front approaching the finish.

When Downing punctured in the finale and Kristian House was tailed off after an attempted attack, Rapha – Condor – Sharp’s evening was ruined, with the men in black slumping to fourth in the standings as a result, seven points off the pace. With Bibby, Andy Tennant and Ed Clancy all prominent as the race rounded the final curve, a Motorpoint – Marshalls Pasta victory looked assured and that was how it turned out, with Bibby holding off Barker and Ian Wilkinson on the line for the win.

Motorpoint/Marshals Pasta Celebrate an individual and team victory in Portsmouth. Photo: Halfords Tour Series / JoolzeDymond.com

The sole bright spot for Rapha – Condor – Sharp was that Kristian House retained his overall lead in the Boardman Bikes Sprint Competition, but the British Champion saw his lead cut to just one point as Liam Holohan won the evening’s Boardman Bikes Sprint Competition. To see all the action from Portsmouth, tune in to ITV4 on Wednesday evening at 7pm for an hour’s highlights show.

The Halfords Tour Series is back in action with Round Four from Exeter on Thursday night. The Ashfords Community Races will open proceedings, building up the atmosphere in Exeter city centre from mid-afternoon onwards, providing great entertainment for all the family.

For more information visit www.tourseries.co.uk or follow the action via Twitter at www.twitter.com/TourSeries

Round Three Results

Team
1.      Motorpoint – Marshalls Pasta
2.      Pendragon – Le Col – Colnago
3.      Endura Racing
4.      Team Raleigh
5.      Sigma Sport - Specialized
6.      CyclePremier.com - Metaltek
7.      Team Corley Cycles
8.      Kuota – road.cc
9.      Rapha – Condor – Sharp
10.     Team Ireland

Individual
1.      Ian Bibby               Motorpoint – Marshalls Pasta
2.      Yanto Barker            Pendragon – Le Col – Colnago
3.      Ian Wilkinson           Endura Racing
4.      Andy Tennant    Motorpoint – Marshalls Pasta
5.      Tony Gibb               CyclePremier.com - Metaltek    

The Halfords Tour Series Standings (after three rounds)
1.      Motorpoint – Marshalls Pasta   28pts
2.      Endura Racing                             22pts
3.      Pendragon – Le Col - Colnago 22pts
4.      Rapha – Condor - Sharp            21pts
5.      Team Raleigh                               20pts
6.      Sigma Sport – Specialized         19pts
7.      CyclePremier.com – Metaltek    13pts
8.      Kuota – road.cc                               9pts
9.      Team Corley Cycles                       8pts
10.      Team Ireland                                 3pts

Boardman Bikes Sprints Competition Results
1.      Liam Holohan    Team Raleigh                      11pts
2.      Kristian House  Rapha – Condor – Sharp    7pts
3.      Evan Oliphant   Endura Racing                        5pts

Boardman Bikes Sprints Competition Overall Standings
1.      Kristian House          Rapha – Condor - Sharp       22pts
2.      Liam Holohan            Team Raleigh                         21pts
3.      Graham Briggs   Rapha – Condor – Sharp            10pts

Related Links
Report for Round 1: Canary Wharf
Report for Round 2: Durham