Joseph O’Brien took the victory at the Junior Tour of the Mendips in the seventh round of the Junior Men’s National Road Series.
O’Brien (Zappi Junior Race Team) claimed the win after a consistent performance over the three days of racing, including a time-trial, sprinters road course, and climbers circuit, as Sebastian Grindley (MAS Design – Fensham Howes) came in second and Zak Machin (BCC Race Team) was third on the overall GC.
The opening 16km time-trial saw Machin steal the win in a time of 17:18.262 just ahead of Grindley on 17:18.279, while Angus Stoneman (Zappi Junior Race Team) came in third. O’Brien finished down in 11th place, as he also did on the second stage road circuit.
The 110km race over eight laps in the Mendip Forest saw George Stephen (BCC Race Team) launch an attack on the final section, finishing seven seconds ahead of the bunch to claim first. A bunch sprint saw Will Slater (Anexo Group Race Team) take second, and Jed Smithson (MAS Design – Fensham Howes) finished in third place. Grindley took 13th place, almost a minute and a half behind O’Brien in the fight for the overall GC.
The final 115km stage race saw the riders tackle the Mendip Hills in a bid for glory, with Grindley crossing the line four seconds ahead of O’Brien to steal the win, but it was still enough for O’Brien to secure the overall lead and take the GC victory. Machin finished in third to take the final spot on the podium and also on the overall GC.
Riders will again take to the start line this weekend for the Junior Tour of Wales over four stages, starting on Friday.
