Following Great Britain's domination of the UCI Downhill Mountain Bike World Championships in Norway, British Cycling’s MTB Downhill Series is set for a gripping finish this weekend.
One of the most hotly contested seasons between mountain bike riders, the top five standings in the elite men’s category are separated by just 21 points, with 70 available for the podium top spot and first in seeding.
With newly crowned world champion Gee Atherton and Josh Bryceland both on 228 points, Danny Hart on 225, Matt Simmonds on 209 and Atherton’s teammate Marc Beaumont on 207, any one of them could potentially claim the season title.
Following her incredible season, the new world cup queen and world champion, 21-year-old Manon Carpenter, has already pedalled her way to this year’s title with 254 pointts after just four rounds.
World championship bronze medallist Tahnee Seagrave currently holds second place on 174 points, with Jessica Greaves coming in a strong third place on 170. Expect Katy Curd to challenge for a podium spot at the new Bike Park Wales course, where the large jumps and berms will no doubt favour this year’s current UCI Four Cross world champion.
Due to an on-going virus picked up early in the season, Rachel Atherton sits in an unfamiliar sixth place in the series having only raced two rounds, both of which she won seeding and race runs, demonstrating her determination to dominate and will no doubt give it her all to be on the podium for the final race.
British Cycling’s MTB Downhill Series, presented by Shimano, pits riders against the clock as they descend some of the toughest track terrain in the country with points awarded for placings at each stage, accumulating across five rounds of the series.
Each rider, from junior through to elite level, must have qualified via regional races and numerous junior winners of the series have gone on to become world cup and world championship winners.
Round five of the series will take place at the relatively new, but hugely popular, Bike Park Wales, near Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales over the weekend of Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 September. Spectating and parking are both free.
