Hoover moves up to second in Track Champions League

Sebastian Mora (Spain) held onto his lead in the UCI Track Champions League with a pair of third places in the Scratch Race and Elimination Race, carrying 89 points into Saturday's final round in London. However, he faces a strong challenge from Gavin Hoover (United States), who claimed an emphatic victory in the Elimination Race.

Hoover had been sitting third overall, but rode a flawless Elimination Race to make the final three, then dispatched both Mora and Poland's Alan Banaszek take his first victory in the series.

Round 1 winner Corbin Strong held onto third at 68 points despite a lacklustre ride in both events.

"I've had a few close ones and I finally got the win," Hoover said. "With the elimination you don't think about the next one you just keep going and see what happens. I think Sebastian is one of the best in the world and has been for a long time, but we'll see what happens tomorrow."

A late attack got away in the Scratch Race, with Claudio Imhof (Switzerland) taking the win and Japan's Kazushige Kuboki beating Mora in the sprint. Hoover placed fifth.