Ferguson solos to first elite British cyclo-cross title
Five-time champion Field settles for second, Killeen third
Grant Ferguson (CST American Eagle) claimed his first-ever elite British title after a tense, long race on Sunday. Five-time champion Ian Field (Hargroves-Ridley-Montezuma’s) took the silver medal, 18 seconds back, while 2016 champion Liam Killeen (Malvern Cycling Sport) finished 23 seconds back to take bronze.
Ferguson, 24, a cross-country mountain biker who represented Great Britain at the 2016 Olympics in Rio, attacked on the penultimate lap after riding a tactical race during which he kept a close eye on his two rivals.
"I knew they would be the main competition this weekend so I was prepared, and I've raced them the last few years so I was aware of what was coming," he said after the finish. "I didn't realise Liam had crashed. There was a bit of a gap and me and Ian was away, so I thought now was a good time to have a shot so I'm really happy it came off."
There was action from the start as a small group splintered off the front of the main peloton early on the first lap. Race favourite and reigning champion Field was the man to watch, and was joined by Ferguson, Killeen and Steven James (Hope Factory Racing).
The lead trio formed on lap two as James fell back, and for much of the race it was a slow-burn, with a cagier style of racing on show among the leaders.
With Field seemingly in control, there was a sense that his companions were waiting for Yorkshireman to make his move, but attacks did come, with Killeen making a move on lap four. He couldn’t make it stick though, and neither could Field with his counter-move. Ferguson, meanwhile, largely rode third wheel - seemingly conserving his energy for the finale.
A mistake from Killeen with two laps to race set off the decisive moves of the day. The Londoner slipped and put a foot down at the pit entry, losing contact and setting up a two-man showdown for the win.
As Field pushed the pace with Killeen chasing, Ferguson was stuck to his wheel, but it would soon be his time to go. At the start of lap seven Ferguson pulled out a small gap, one which only increased up the climb.
An anticipated push from Field to close the gap never fully materialised, with three-time British U23 champion Ferguson looking just that bit stronger as he extended his lead and rode on to victory.
Full Results
# | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
---|---|---|
1 | Grant Ferguson (GBr) | 1:06:11 |
2 | Ian Field (GBr) | 0:00:18 |
3 | Liam Killeen (GBr) | 0:00:23 |
4 | Steven James (GBr) | 0:02:00 |
5 | Paul Oldham (GBr) | 0:02:15 |
6 | Giles Drake (GBr) | 0:02:39 |
7 | Lewis Craven (GBr) | 0:03:25 |
8 | David Fletcher (GBr) | 0:04:01 |
9 | Stephen James (GBr) | 0:04:08 |
10 | Iain Paton (GBr) | 0:04:23 |
11 | Tony Fawcett (GBr) | 0:04:29 |
12 | Nicholas Craig (GBr) | 0:04:35 |
13 | Michael Butler (GBr) | 0:05:16 |
14 | Thomas Armstrong (GBr) | 0:05:26 |
15 | Sam Allen (GBr) | 0:05:27 |
16 | George Thompson (GBr) | 0:06:27 |
17 | Jack Clarkson (GBr) | 0:06:43 |
18 | Jonathan Dennis (GBr) | 0:07:05 |
19 | Freddie Checketts (GBr) | 0:07:14 |
20 | Lee Williams (GBr) | 0:07:18 |
21 | Robert Burns (GBr) | 0:07:32 |
22 | Nicholas Barnes (GBr) | 0:07:49 |
23 | David Lines (GBr) | 0:08:15 |
24 | Scott Chalmers (GBr) | 0:00:36 |
25 | Thomas Payton (GBr) | 0:00:37 |
26 | David Earth (GBr) | -1 Lap |
27 | Bruce Dalton (GBr) | Row 26 - Cell 2 |
28 | Neil Phillips (GBr) | Row 27 - Cell 2 |
29 | Ian Lee (GBr) | Row 28 - Cell 2 |
30 | William Brown (GBr) | Row 29 - Cell 2 |
31 | Martin Woffindin (GBr) | Row 30 - Cell 2 |
32 | Dave Powell (GBr) | Row 31 - Cell 2 |
33 | Stuart Reid (GBr) | Row 32 - Cell 2 |
34 | Mark Cotton (GBr) | Row 33 - Cell 2 |
35 | Jonathan Fletcher (GBr) | Row 34 - Cell 2 |
36 | Samuel Holder (GBr) | Row 35 - Cell 2 |
37 | Paul Elcock (GBr) | Row 36 - Cell 2 |
38 | Daniel Preece (GBr) | Row 37 - Cell 2 |
39 | Simon Gibbs (GBr) | Row 38 - Cell 2 |
40 | Kieren Jarratt (GBr) | Row 39 - Cell 2 |
41 | Keith Murray (GBr) | Row 40 - Cell 2 |
42 | Gareth Whittall (GBr) | Row 41 - Cell 2 |
43 | Joshua Jones (GBr) | Row 42 - Cell 2 |
44 | Robert Watson (GBr) | Row 43 - Cell 2 |
45 | Benjamin Shucksmith (GBr) | Row 44 - Cell 2 |
46 | Daniel Atkins (GBr) | Row 45 - Cell 2 |
47 | Christopher Burns (GBr) | Row 46 - Cell 2 |
48 | John Routledge (GBr) | Row 47 - Cell 2 |
49 | Alan Collins (GBr) | Row 48 - Cell 2 |
50 | Bryan Laycock (GBr) | Row 49 - Cell 2 |
51 | Ellis Mccoy (GBr) | Row 50 - Cell 2 |
52 | Simon Meadwell (GBr) | Row 51 - Cell 2 |
53 | Paul Barrett (GBr) | Row 52 - Cell 2 |
54 | Jon Moss (GBr) | Row 53 - Cell 2 |
55 | Liam Casey (GBr) | Row 54 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Alexander Forrester (GBr) | Row 55 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Jeremy Hicks (GBr) | Row 56 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Gareth Brookes (GBr) | Row 57 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Callum Riley (GBr) | Row 58 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Gary Macdonald (GBr) | Row 59 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Robert Jebb (GBr) | Row 60 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Daniel Booth (GBr) | Row 61 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Jonathan Bayley (GBr) | Row 62 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Adam Cooke (GBr) | Row 63 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Dean Ridley (GBr) | Row 64 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Antony Glover (GBr) | Row 65 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Ronnie Batey (GBr) | Row 66 - Cell 2 |
DNS | James Vickers (GBr) | Row 67 - Cell 2 |
DNS | Peter Ruffhead (GBr) | Row 68 - Cell 2 |
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Dani Ostanek is Senior News Writer at Cyclingnews, joining in 2017 as a freelance contributor and later being hired full-time. Before joining the team, they had written for numerous major publications in the cycling world, including CyclingWeekly and Rouleur.
Dani has reported from the world's top races, including the Tour de France, Road World Championships, and the spring Classics. They have interviewed many of the sport's biggest stars, including Mathieu van der Poel, Demi Vollering, and Remco Evenepoel. Their favourite races are the Giro d'Italia, Strade Bianche and Paris-Roubaix.
Season highlights from the 2024 season include reporting from Paris-Roubaix – 'Unless I'm in an ambulance, I'm finishing this race' – Cyrus Monk, the last man home at Paris-Roubaix – and the Tour de France – 'Disbelief', gratitude, and family – Mark Cavendish celebrates a record-breaking Tour de France sprint win.
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