Report – Matrix Fitness GP Series Peterborough

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Dame Sarah Storey (Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International) tonight smashed her class all over round 4 of the Matrix Fitness Grand Prix series.

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Report – Matrix Fitness GP Series Peterborough

by Gordon Wiseman

Dame Sarah Storey (Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International) tonight smashed her class all over round 4 of the Matrix Fitness Grand Prix series. And at the same time, the Pearl Izumi quintet showed exactly how to race to win the team completion as well.

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Back to the familiar 1.1km fast flowing, near triangular circuit in Peterborough, the 50 strong peloton, one of the smallest fields so far this year for what’s been a vintage Matrix series, could do little to stop any one of the 5 Pearl Izumi riders taking the honours on the night.

Repeating their successful tactics at the weekend’s London Nocturne, one after another of their riders attacked off the front until finally one of their number, Dame Sarah, finally broke the elastic as she stormed away to her first win in the series this year.

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Joanna Rowsell who was off the front a few times and won the combativity award

In the early laps Nikki Juniper (Team Giordana Triton), putting her cuts and bruises from the Nocturne out of her mind and gutsily defending her Matrix leader’s jersey, and Lydia Boylan (Team WNT) were joined by Eileen Roe (Wiggle-Honda), Pearl Izumi’s Katie Curtis and the Team USN pairing of Emily Kay and Emily Nelson in the first real break at the front of the race.

Juniper picked up maximum Sprint points during that break and went on to win the evening’s Sprints prize and in doing so extend her lead in the overall Points competition as well.

The leaders were pulling even further away from the rest of the field and were soon lapping back markers but by that point Dame Sarah and the other Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International Olympian, Jo Rowsell, had latched onto the back of the break making it look like Pearl Izumi would be extending their lead at the top of the team competition.

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Nikki Juniper doing a lot of chasing after multiple attacks from the Pearl Izumi team

After about 20 minutes racing, Storey, sitting in the back markers in the very early laps, now pulled away at the front making the other teams chase her down as Curtis and Rowsell were able to sit in and ‘enjoy’ the ride.

And after they’d succeeded in pulling Storey back Rowsell pulled off the classic counter attack and very quickly opened a 5 then 10 second lead, comfortably taking the second mid-race Sprint of the night.

Just behind the leaders, Team WNT and Giordana Triton had been working tirelessly to bridge the gap to the leaders so that, moving into the end stages of the race, the front group was now around 20 strong.

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Winning team, Pearl Izumi Sports Tours

In working with Team WNT, Giordana Triton hadn’t been chasing down their own team leader but rather, trying to bring themselves back into the evening’s and therefore the overall team competition.

But soon after that junction was made and Rowsell had been pulled back, Dame Sarah set off at the front again and this time the rest of the field could only watch as her back wheel sped off into the distance.

Lapping at around 1min. 35secs a lap Storey’s lead only grew more and more as, gritting her teeth, she didn’t ease off the pedals so as she took the chequered flag her lead had stretched to over 30 seconds in just 5 laps.

In the sprint for second place, Eileen Roe, just as she had done at the Nocturne, outsprinted Nikki Juniper but the Giordana Triton rider had done more than enough to retain her Matrix Fitness Grand Prix leader’s jersey going into Thursday’s evening’s final round in Bath.

Charline Joiner (Team WNT) – “The series this year has been really good. I was really pleased with my result last week in Croydon and I wanted to build on that tonight but it wasn’t meant to be. I was first out of the final corner and with Sarah down the road I would have been sprinting for second but as I started I just didn’t have the legs.

“But I’ve had my win this year and that’s something I’ve been chasing since I started in the Matrix series. I was with MG-Maxifuel in 2013, a shortened season with Pearl Izumi last year and although I got second overall behind Eileen’ – Roe – ‘I was struggling with the aftereffects of a back injury and then training for the Commonwealths. But to now get that win, I’m more than happy.

“We’re disappointed not to get the team win tonight because everybody rode really well, we were grouping together which was good but Pearl Izumi just got us in the end. What was positive is that we had more riders at the front of the race and just rode better as a team.

“We worked with Giordana to pull the front group back with Hannah Walker and Brit Tate really doing a lot on the front to make that possible.

“I’m looking forward to the race in Bath as there’s cobbles, a climb and corners, really technical just as I like it, just as Croydon was.

“The year has been good all-round for me as I’m now working as well. That means I can’t train as much, maybe 8 or 10 hours per week, but I’ve got my own business as a personal trainer and doing Watt bike tests, working out training zones and programmes for other riders.

“For the rest of the year I just want to continue enjoying my racing, getting good results where I can and contributing to what is a great team. We’ve got great sponsors in WNT, a great DS and team manager and it all produces a really great team spirit. And that’s what we pride ourselves on”.

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Eileen Roe (Wiggle Honda) – “I was very happy with my sprint tonight, especially as I’d been in the early break and that was pulled back so to keep my form like that to the end of the race, really happy with that.

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Great celebration from Eileen Roe, in second.

And to also have got second after Pearl Izumi’s constant attacks! I looked up at the clock at one point and it only said that we’d been racing for 22 minutes and I was starting to struggle so I’d definitively say that was one of the hardest of these races for me.

“Although after Katie Archibald had gone up the road on Saturday night so we were only racing for second then, tonight was different because although Sarah had gone up the road there was still a feeling that, maybe we might pull her back.

“I’m really enjoying my life as a pro rider in Europe but because I’m still living in Scotland the travelling is really tiring and the only negative thing. But that’s part of the package of being a pro.

“I don’t have that many races before the Nationals, I don’t know if I’m worried or if that’s a good thing. I’ve got Bath on Thursday, the Diamond Tour in Belgium at the weekend and then the Curlew Cup the week before the Nationals, my first British RR of the season.”

“Unfortunately I’m not doing the Aviva Women’s Tour but I really would like to do so. Everyone wants to do that race. Everyone’s talking about it and it’s probably the best race of the year on the women’s calendar. And it’s in Britain!

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Sarah Storey on the front from the start

“Riding the UCI races is what I’ve always wanted to do. Now I’ve got my foot in the door it’s where I want to be so now I’ve got to make sure I get a contract for next year. So far I think I’ve done well, I’ve had positive feedback from my team-mates and team manager so I’m hoping that when it comes to having that chat with Rochelle I’ll get a contract for next year.

“Racing with the team in Australia at the start of the season was great. I went there to race in November last year so already it’s been a very long season for me. It was a great experience but the racing was really hard. What didn’t help was that I had bronchitis for about six weeks before I went so I wasn’t really in the best of shape before we started. But the racing was great and it gave me a great chance to get to know some of the others on the team so overall it really was a great experience”.

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All rounder Nikki Juniper who leads the series talks to Joe Fisher before the podium presentation

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Eileen Roe, Sarah Storey and Nikki Juniper

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Nikki Juniper, Points winner

WOMENS

Individual Round Classification
1 Dame Sarah Storey Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 0:44:11.235
2 Eileen Roe Wiggle Honda 0:44:30.082
3 Nikki Juniper Team Giordana Triton 0:44:30.207
4 Emily Kay Team USN 0:44:30.297
5 Abigail Dentus Team Velosport 0:44:30.636
6 Emily Nelson Team USN 0:44:30.816
7 Katie Curtis Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 0:44:30.869
8 Clemence Copie Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 0:44:30.915
9 Charline Joiner Team WNT 0:44:31.016
10 Henrietta Colborne Team Jadan 0:44:31.099
11 Gabriella Shaw Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 0:44:31.109
12 Hannah Walker Team WNT 0:44:31.277
13 Abby-Mae Parkinson Team Giordana Triton 0:44:31.342
14 Ellie Dickinson Team Giordana Triton 0:44:31.447
15 Jessie Walker RST Racing Team 0:44:31.471
16 Annasley Park Team Giordana Triton 0:44:31.971
17 Kiera McVitty Team Giordana Triton 0:44:32.671
18 Amy Gornall Aprire Bicycles/HSS Hire 0:44:32.781
19 Lydia Boylan Team WNT 0:44:32.889
20 Joanna Rowsell Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 0:44:33.280
21 Gabby Durrin Neon-Velo Cycling Team 0:44:33.516
22 Rebecca Mackey Aprire Bicycles/HSS Hire 0:44:33.542
23 Brit Tate Team WNT 0:44:34.851
24 Louise Laker PMR@ToachimHouse 0:44:37.767
25 Sian Botteley Velosure Starley Primal 0:45:56.866
26 Madeline Verdegaal Boston Wheelers CC 0:39:35.280
27 Annabel Fisher Team Jadan 0:39:55.205
28 Monica Dew Team Jadan 0:39:55.309
29 Sophie Lankford Cardiff Ajax CC 0:39:55.391
30 Clover Murray Corley Cycles – Drops RT 0:39:55.503
31 Jo Tindley Team WNT 0:39:55.535
32 Lucy Harper Aprire Bicycles/HSS Hire 0:39:55.784
33 Nicola Soden Carnac Planet X 0:39:55.795
34 Alison Kinloch VCUK PH-Mas 0:39:55.801
35 Susan Freeburn PMR@ToachimHouse 0:39:56.808
36 Katy Simcock Corley Cycles – Drops RT 0:39:57.831
37 Amy Brice 0:40:03.541
38 Rosa Martin VCUK PH-Mas 0:40:04.337
39 Tanya Griffiths Velosure Starley Primal 0:40:04.945
40 Sinead Burke VCUK PH-Mas 0:40:05.319
41 Josephine Gilbert Velosure Starley Primal 0:40:08.977
42 Jenny Eastham VCUK PH-Mas 0:40:10.463
43 Ruth Summerford PMR@ToachimHouse 0:40:29.663
44 Rebecca Raybould Team Jadan 0:39:03.695
45 Madeleine Gammons Bourne Wheelers 0:39:35.822
46 Chloe Weller PMR@ToachimHouse 0:40:02.544
47 Louise Scupham Team Jadan 0:40:02.566
48 Eleanor Cadzow PMR@ToachimHouse 0:40:04.486
49 Sandra Mackay Carnac Planet X 0:40:06.426

Sprints Competition

Sprint 1
1 Nikki Juniper Team Giordana Triton 5
2 Lydia Boylan Team WNT 4
3 Katie Curtis Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 3
4 Eileen Roe Wiggle Honda 2
5 Emily Kay Team USN 1

Sprint 2
1 Joanna Rowsell Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 5
2 Nikki Juniper Team Giordana Triton 4
3 Katie Curtis Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 3
4 Lydia Boylan Team WNT 2
5 Dame Sarah Storey Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 1

Sprints Classification for Round 4

1 25 Nikki Juniper Team Giordana Triton 9
2 5 Katie Curtis Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 6
3 30 Lydia Boylan Team WNT 6
4 8 Joanna Rowsell Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 5
5 47 Eileen Roe Wiggle Honda 2
6 10 Dame Sarah Storey Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 1
7 71 Emily Kay Team USN 1

Sprints Overall Classification at Round 4

1 Nikki Juniper Team Giordana Triton 33
2 Jessie Walker RST Racing Team 20
3 Lydia Boylan Team WNT 8
4 Katie Archibald Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 7
5 Katie Curtis Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 6
= Louise Mahe IKON Mazda 6
7 Joanna Rowsell Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 5
8 Eileen Roe Wiggle Honda 5
9 Gabriella Shaw Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 5
10 Elinor Barker Matrix Fitness 4
= Emily Nelson Team USN 4
12 Annasley Park Team Giordana Triton 4
13 Manon Lloyd Team USN 3
14 Emily Kay Team USN 3
15 Dani King Wiggle Honda 2
16 Laura Trott Matrix Fitness 2
= Charline Joiner Team WNT 2
18 Dame Sarah Storey Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 1
Team Classification for Round 4
1 Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 47
2 Team Giordana Triton 33
3 Team WNT 23
4 Team Jadan 11
5 Aprire Bicycles/HSS Hire 3

Team Overall Classification for Round 4
1 Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 47
2 Team Giordana Triton 33
3 Team WNT 23
4 Team Jadan 11
5 Aprire Bicycles/HSS Hire 3

Team Overall Classification for Round 4
1 Pearl Izumi Sports Tours International 156
2 Team Giordana Triton 140
3 Team WNT 100
4 Team USN 49
5 Matrix Fitness 45
6 Team Jadan 42
7 Corley Cycles Drops RT 23
8 Les Filles 13
9 IKON Mazda 8
10 PMR@ToachimHouse 4
11 Aprire Bicycles/HSS Hire 3
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