Round 4 of the Nissan UCI Mountain Bike World Cup saw the World's best downhill racers hitting it out on a damper Mont-Sainte-Anne course after more than a month’s break from racing the series.
Team Monster Energy Iron Horse's Sam Hill (AUS) took 2nd place in the semi final, and another 2nd place in the final, to now find himself 2nd overall in the series. Team mate Brendan Fairclough (GBR), now back in full fitness, finished 12th, a career best on the physically demanding course.
Whereas many believe Schladming and Maribor are courses that Sam owns, he is the first to admit that his win in Mont-Sainte-Anne last year was against the odds.
"Coming here I know that this track suits guys like Greg Minnaar, Steve Peat and Gee Atherton. It's one for the bigger guys who can carry speed better than me and are stronger in the pedaling sections," said Sam.
Therefore, to score a 2nd here was an exercise in damage control before moving to tracks that suit him better.
Mont-Sainte-Anne was not its typical dry and hot self for the downhillers this week. Plenty of rain and fog earlier in the week, and water running off the mountain keeping sections of the track wet throughout the day, despite the lack of rain. Tire choice was important with the changing surfaces from dry out in the sun, to muddy slippery sections in the forest, catching some top riders out including previous winner on this track Chris Kovarik (AUS).
In the semi final Sam ran cut Wetscream tires which hooked up really well and gave him a second place, just 0.44secs. With the points in the overall so tightly packed, this result conceded 10 points to Minnaar, but meant that Sam was still technically leading going into the final, leading by 18 points. Brendan rode a solid top 10 and was feeling good for the afternoon final.
"We walked the course last night after the final training session because the track was changing so much and it was hard to get a handle on our lines. Practice was so hard with rocks coming through, lines changing, so after walking, the difference was like night and day for us. We really knew what we had to do and so it was good that we both got top 10's in the semi", said Sam.
In the final both riders got down without major incident and despite taking the lead with just Minnaar to come, Sam had to relinquish the leader's jersey and was the first to congratulate Greg as he crossed the line in first place.
"Yeah, it's pretty tough giving over the lead, but to be honest, this is a harder track for me so it wasn't unexpected. I'm keen to get onto the top box next week. The new Bromont track is about 2m 30secs long, a little like Brazil up top with a skinny trail between trees, and then it becomes more like a Canadian track further down, rock slabs and roots and stuff. I think it will really suit my style, but the other top guys are on it too," said Sam shortly after the race was done.
For Brendan, the results are solid and see him return after injury:
"Top 10 in the semi was encouraging and I would like to have built on that for the final, but it wasn't to be. My crash at round 2 in Andorra was a lot bigger than most people realize and it's taking me time to get back up to speed. I didn't have any moments in the final which means I wasn't pinning everything, so I still need to work on that. Physically thought I've been working hard, especially on the Moto X bike to get my shoulder strong, and did the Avalanche Cup which was wicked, and I think I'm on the way back up. This week has helped my overall as I'm sitting 13th and within shot of the top 10."
Final:
1. Greg Minnaar (RSA) 4m 30.57secs
2. Sam Hill (AUS) Team Monster Energy Iron Horse 4m 32.30secs
3. Gee Atherton (GBR) 4m 32.83secs
4. Steve Peat (GBR) 4m 33.53secs
5. Fabien Barel (FRA) 4m 37.25secs
12. Brendan Fairclough (GBR) Team Monster Energy Iron Horse 4m 43secs
Overall Points:
1. Greg Minnaar (RSA) - 792 pts
2. Sam Hill (AUS) Team Monster Energy Iron Horse - 770 pts
2. Gee Atherton (GBR) - 727 pts
4. Steve Peat (GBR) - 642 pts
5. Fabien Barel (FRA) - 434 pts
Team Monster Energy Iron Horse is also sponsored by: Mad Catz, Game Shark, Air Drives, RockShox, SRAM, Avid, FUNN, Maxxis, DT Swiss, FSA, Crank Brothers, WTB, e.thirteen, DW Link, Troy Lee Designs, Minoura, Maxima, Obtainium Performance Products, Five-Ten, Freestyle Watches, THE, Alligator, Yamaha of Troy, KMC and Kicker.
More info:
www.madcatzracing.com
