After qualifying 1st yesterday in the Women's Downhill, Trek World Racing's Tracy Moseley confirmed, after her 3rd in Mont-Sainte-Anne last week, that she is back on form.
A couple of mistakes in the final today robbed her of a higher place on the podium, but the team is thrilled to have Tracy back where she belongs, on podiums and on top of result sheets.
The men had a tougher time this week with Andrew Neethling crashing in both the qualifiers and the finals, despite being on top 10 pace in nearly all sectors. It was just a bit of bad luck in the final where a critical section of the course had washed out before Andrew's run. Justin Leov qualified 9th on a track that doesn't suit, and was looking good for another top 10 today, but fell just outside in 11th.
The race was held in sunny and warm conditions, but the riders had to battle with a course that was bone dry in some sections, and still very wet from seepage, in the forested areas. Overall all the results keep Trek World Racing in 2nd place overall, and Justin and Tracy keep their ranking steady, as 3rd and 6th respectively.
Tracy Moseley said: "After qualifying 1st I have to say I'm disappointed to come in 4th this afternoon. I was a little surprised when I crossed the line and saw the time. It's a weird track, as most people didn't lose time on the super technical sections; it was the relatively straight forward berms half way down where people lost chunks of time, including me. Fortunately I made up about 40 points on Emmeline (Ragot) today and I'm within striking distance for 2nd place overall. Now though, my focus is on preparing for the World Championships in 5 weeks."
Justin Leov said: "That's the best I think I could have done on this track. Not my favourite kind of race, a little too short, and I hit all the technical sections the best I did all week. It was the flatter easier sections which I didn't get right. My bike was more set up for the tougher stuff. I told my mechanic before the start that I felt a 2m 36 was the best I could do, and strangely, that's what I got. Maintaining 6th in the overall is important to me and I gained some ground on some key competitors."
Andrew Neethling said: "Two crashes in two races; I can't think of a time when I've ever done that. It sux as I was really fast at the splits in both races. In the final there was a berm that Justin and I were using as a key line, but when I arrived there, it had been completely washed out. It just wasn't there, and the next thing I knew was that my handlebars were under my ribs, and I hit the ground. I radioed up to Justin when I finished, so I could warn him, otherwise he would have gone down for sure. Pretty disappointed for sure, for me and the team."
The results and standings are below.
Men's Results:
1. Greg Minnaar (RSA) ˆ 2m 31.65secs
2. Fabien Barel (FRA) ˆ 2m 32.11secs
3. Sam Hill (AUS) ˆ 2m 32.28secs
4. Gee Atherton (GBR) ˆ 2m 32.68secs
5. Aaron Gwin (CAN) ˆ 2m 33.06secs
6. Mick Hannah (AUS) ˆ 2m 33.32secs
7. Steve Peat (GBR) ˆ 2m 33.48secs
8. Chris Kovarik (AUS) ˆ 2m 34.44secs
9. Josh Bryceland (GBR) ˆ 2m 35.72secs
10. Brendan Fairclough (GBR) ˆ 2m 35.74secs
11. Justin Leov (Trek World Racing) ˆ 2m 36.26secs
56. Andrew Neethling (Trek World Racing) ˆ 2m 48.64secs
Men's Standings
1. Sam Hill (AUS) ˆ 1219 pts
2. Greg Minnaar (RSA) ˆ 1203 pts
3. Steve Peat (GBR) ˆ 1150 pts
4. Gee Atherton (GBR) ˆ 1078 pts
5. Mick Hannah (AUS) ˆ 929 pts
6. Justin Leov (Trek World Racing ) ˆ 732 pts
7. Brendan Fairclough (GBR) ˆ 670 pts
8. Sam Blenkinsop (NZL) ˆ 646 pts
9. Aaron Gwin (USA) ˆ 632 pts
10. Fabien Barel (FRA) ˆ 620 pts
11. Steve Smith (CAN) ˆ 574 pts
12. Josh Bryceland (GBR) ˆ 529 pts
13. Nick Beer (SUI) ˆ 520 pts
14. Andrew Neethling (Trek World Racing) ˆ 497 pts
Women's Results:
1. Sabrina Jonnier (FRA) ˆ 5m 26.50secs
2. Emmeline Ragot (FRA) ˆ 3m 30.29secs
3. Tracy Moseley (Trek World Racing) ˆ 5m 31.27secs
4. Celine Gros (FRA) ˆ 5m 36.41secs
5. Floriane Pugin (FRA) ˆ 3m 36.71secs
Women's Standings
1. Sabrina Jonnier (FRA) ˆ 1602 pts
2. Emmeline Ragot (FRA) ˆ 1225 pts
3. Tracy Moseley (Trek World Racing) ˆ 1141 pts
4. Floriane Pugin (FRA) ˆ 904 pts
5. Celine Gros (FRA) ˆ 850 pts
Team Standings
1. Santa Cruz Syndicate ˆ 510 pts
2. Trek World Racing ˆ 464 pts
3. Yeti Fox Shox Factory Team ˆ 355 pts
4. Team Maxxis Rocky Mountain ˆ 355 pts
5. Monster Energy Specialized ˆ 342 pts
Tomorrow sees the XC riders tackling round 6 of the World Cup, also here at Mont-Sainte-Anne. Tune into www.Freecaster.tv for live coverage, sponsored by Trek.
Check in during the coming week for the video release on the team web site:
www.trekbikes.com/twr
