Report: Tennant wins the Richmond GP

Andy Tennant of Rapha wins the final Premier Calendar event of the season as break of five gets away and stays away — Bibby clinches the series overall.

Report & images from Ian McVety

It was Andy Tennant’s day at the Richmond Grand Prix when he crossed the line two seconds clear of his breakaway companions who has resisted the chasers all the way to the finish. The day’s break started when Raleigh’s Jamie Sparling went away after the sprint on the way to Swaildale and was then joined by Simon Richardson (Sigma Sport Specialized), Andy Tennant (Rapha Condor Sharp), Dan Fleeman (Raleigh) and Marcin Bialoblocki (Motorpoint).

By the bottom of the Buttertubs climb, they had three minutes and the chase from Endura Racing saw the peloton split into two groups of 30 or 40 riders. While Tennant sat in on the climb and then sprinted to win the King of the Mountains on the race’s notorious climb, the gap to the chasers continued to grow and went out to four minutes at one stage.

No matter what Endura Racing or the other key riders who had missed the break did though, they could not close the gap completely although they did reduce it to just over a minute. Bibby then attacked followed by Russell Downing but like many attacks from the chase group, it never succeeded.

It wasn’t until the finale that the chasers had the break in sight at thirty seconds but it still wasn’t bridgable and in the run to the line, Tennant opened up a gap on his rivals to win the race alone, two seconds clear of Richardson.

L-R: Richardson, Tennant and Fleeman.

Tennant was pleased with his form after being ill during the Olympic test event a few weeks ago, and after a rest has come back with some formidable form. “I’m really chuffed to have won today” he explained afterwards. “After suffering in some races in France, today, I zipped across to the early move and I looked around at the others and thought “these are better climbers than me”.

“To be fair to everyone in the break, until the last two k, we all worked hard together. I was probably softy tapping the most out of everyone and then in the last few K, Bialoblocki  started to sit in, and I was forced to lead the sprint out with 700 to go. I countered the move by Richardson and just went. I thought, if they come round me, they come round me, I gave it everything.

Tennant punches the air as he wins the final Premier for 2011.

More photos of the race here: http://www.citrusimages.co.uk/IMAGES/CYLING_HOME/CYCLING_INDEX/CYCLING_GALLERY/RICHMOND_GP_11/index.html

Result
1  Andrew Tennant Rapha Condor Sharp 03:11:31  03:11:31
2  Simon Richardson Sigma Sport Specialized Cycling 03:11:33  2
3  Dan Fleeman Team Raleigh 03:11:33  st
4  Marcin Bialoblocki Motorpoint Pro Cycling 03:11:36  5
5  Ian Bibby Motorpoint Pro Cycling 03:11:57  26
6  Zak Dempster Rapha Condor Sharp 03:11:57  st
7  Johnny McEvoy Motorpoint Pro Cycling 03:11:58  st
8  Russell Downing Sky Pro Cycling 03:11:59  28
9  Liam Holohan Team Raleigh 03:12:00  st
10  Tom Last Sigma Sport Specialized Cycling 03:12:00  st
11  Stephen Adams Sigma Sport Specialized Cycling 03:12:00  st
12  Steve Lampier Sigma Sport Specialized Cycling 03:12:01  st
13  Rob Partridge Endura Racing 03:12:02  st
14  Pete Williams Motorpoint Pro Cycling 03:12:02  st
15  Robert Hassan Endura/Pedalpower Development T 03:12:02  st
16  Yanto Barker Pendragon – Le Col – Colnago 03:12:02  st
17  Michael Cuming Twenty3c-Orbea 03:12:03  st
18  Samuel Harrison 100% ME 03:12:04  33
19  Tobyn Horton Motorpoint Pro Cycling 03:12:04  st
20  David Clarke Endura Racing 03:12:05  st
21  Evan Oliphant Endura Racing 03:12:05  st
22  James Sampson Motorpoint Pro Cycling 03:12:05  st
23  Richard Cartland Team Corley Cycles/Cervelo/Alph 03:12:06  st
24  Kit Gilham Sigma Sport Specialized Cycling 03:12:07  36
25  Niklas Gustavsson Team UK Youth 03:12:09  38
26  Dale Appleby Cyclepremier.com – Metaltek 03:12:13  42
27  Matt Cronshaw Team Raleigh 03:12:15  44
28  Gael Le Bellec Team Raleigh 03:12:15  st
29  Jonathan Tiernan-Locke Rapha Condor Sharp 03:12:17  46
30  Will Berjgfelt Motorpoint Pro Cycling 03:12:18  st
31  Wouter Sybrandy Sigma Sport Specialized Cycling 03:12:24  53
32  Ben Greenwood Rapha Condor Sharp 03:12:44  01:13
33  Richard Handley Team Raleigh 03:12:45  st
34  Kristian House Rapha Condor Sharp 03:12:56  01:25
35  Dan Craven Rapha Condor Sharp 03:12:56  st
36  Chris Bartlett Marco Polo 03:16:05  04:34
37  Michael Smith Team Corley Cycles/Cervelo/Alph 03:16:06  04:35
38  Thomas Copeland Sigma Sport Specialized Cycling 03:16:07  st
39  Luke Dunbar Team Qoroz 03:16:09  04:38
40  Graham Briggs Rapha Condor Sharp 03:16:19  04:48
41  Jamie Sparling Team Raleigh 03:16:19  st
42  Ryan Sherlock Sport Active 03:17:55  06:24
43  Gary Hand Endura/Pedalpower Development T 03:17:58  06:27
44  Ashley Cox Team Corley Cycles/Cervelo/Alph 03:17:59  st
45  Freddy Johansson Team UK Youth 03:18:00  06:29
46  Ian Taylor Herbalife/Wheelbase.co.uk 03:18:02  06:31
47  Alastair Kay Herbalife/Wheelbase.co.uk 03:18:04  06:33
48  Russell Falder Cyclepremier.com – Metaltek 03:18:05  06:34
49  Tom Barras Cyclepremier.com – Metaltek 03:18:07  06:36
50  Tom Murray Sigma Sport Specialized Cycling 03:18:07  st
51  Jack Kirk Cyclisme Competition Multipole  03:18:26  06:55
52  Simon Baxter Herbalife/Wheelbase.co.uk 03:18:26  st
53  James Dobbin Adeo Cadence Race Team 03:20:30  08:59
54  Rob Carter Velo29 Cycling Team 03:20:30  st
55  Rafael Segarra Rodriguez Twenty3c-Orbea 03:20:30  st
56  Adam Cotterell WyndyMilla Maxifuel 03:20:30  st
57  Matt Ullmer Team Qoroz 03:20:31  st
58  Andrew Hawdon Herbalife/Wheelbase.co.uk 03:20:31  st
59  Rowan Dever Pasta Montegrappa – Zheroquadro 03:20:31  st
60  Christopher Mark Velo29 Cycling Team 03:20:31  st
61  Gruffudd Lewis Team UK Youth 03:20:31  st
62  Conor Ryan Velo Club Montpellier 03:20:31  st
63  Chris McNamara Team Corley Cycles/Cervelo/Alph 03:20:31  st
64  Anthony Moye CC Luton 03:20:31  st
65  James Cartridge Adeo Cadence Race Team 03:20:31  st
66  Ross Creber Cyclepremier.com – Metaltek 03:20:32  st
67  David Lines Endura/Pedalpower Development T 03:20:33  09:02
68  Anthony Walsh Cycling Leinster 03:20:34  st
69  Jack Cutsforth Herbalife/Wheelbase.co.uk 03:20:37  09:06
70  Sam Ward Wills Bros Racing 03:20:38  09:07
71  Ben Stockdale Team Qoroz 03:20:39  st
72  Daniel Smith Velo29 Cycling Team 03:20:41  09:10
73  Jeroen Janssen Team Raleigh 03:20:41  st
74  Simon Gaywood Team Corley Cycles/Cervelo/Alph 03:20:44  09:13

Fina Overall
1. Ian Bibby. Motorpoint Pro Cycling 358
2. Jonny McEvoy. Motorpoint Pro Cycling 337
3. Marcin Bialoblocki. Motorpoint Pro Cycling 325