Jon Mould is on the verge of claiming the 2015 British Cycling Elite Circuit Series title at round seven of eight, the Chepstow Grand Prix on Wednesday 5 August.
The ONE Pro Cycling rider heads the standings with a 46-point lead and, with a maximum of 60 points available from the final two rounds, only a major upset will deny the Welshman the title on home soil.
After Chepstow the series concludes two days later in Abergavenny, where the 2015 Elite Circuit Series champion will be crowned.
Form guide
David McGowan is Mould’s only mathematical rival for the title, the Pedal Heaven RT rider on 110 points to Mould’s 156 after six rounds of the series.
McGowan and his Pedal Heaven RT squad have been a revelation all season but with Mould flying high since he won round two is Stafford, McGowan has always been on the chase.
It was JLT Condor (then Rapha Condor JLT) who took the win in Chepstow last year, with Graham Briggs the victor. However it is Briggs’ teammate, Felix English who looks odds-on for a top-three series finish, the Irishman on 82 points, just four ahead of Madison Genesis’ Matt Cronshaw.
Raleigh-GAC’s Evan Oliphant and Andrew Hawdon hover in fifth and sixth in the standings, both within reach of third place overall, Oliphant thanks to his consistent finishing, while Hawdon’s points tally was buoyed by a win in Colne.
Pedal Heaven showed that they’ve got more cards to play than McGowan at the British Cycling National Circuit Race Championships in Barnsley a week ago, with Stephen Williams on a solo break that threatened to go all the way.
Kristian House was instrumental in bringing Williams back and the 2009 British road champion will also represent JLT Condor alongside Ed Clancy.
2013 series winner George Atkins showed his appetite for a big circuit win in Barnsley, desperately chasing Bibby on the final lap and the ONE Pro Cycling rider will be keen to improve on his joint tenth place in the standings.
Fresh from the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic come Great Britain Cycling Team Senior Academy riders Germain Burton, Gabriel Cullaigh, Scott Davies, Matt Gibson, Jake Kelly and Ollie Wood, augmented by Chris Latham and Mark Stewart, riding for the 100% ME squad.
The venue
The historic market town of Chepstow is a picturesque venue for the penultimate round of the season, its tight twisting streets providing an extra level of challenge for the peloton.
The lap begins on Bridge Street before a series of sharp turns brings riders onto Nelson Street. The race continues on narrow streets to Lower Church Street before a left-hander leads to St Ann Street. A final left onto Bridge Street brings the race back to the start.
Riders will race for one hour plus five laps, with the race beginning at 8:00pm.
How to follow the racing
- Live updates on Twitter @BritishCycling on Wednesday night from 8.00pm.
- A report, results and reaction will appear on the British Cycling website.
- Video highlights will appear on the British Cycling Events YouTube channel.
- Full highlights will be screened on British Eurosport on 14 August.
