NRC: Men's standings under new leadership

  
  


After a two-week hiatus, the USA Cycling National Racing Calendar (NRC) resumed with the men racing the Tour of the Battenkill on Sunday in Cambridge, N.Y. The 200-kilometer road race in upstate New York has put a new rider in the top spot in the men's standings.

Mancebo takes over the NRC lead as the Joe Martin Stage Race p/b Nature Valley takes center stage, April 26-29.
Mancebo takes over the NRC lead as the Joe Martin Stage Race p/b Nature Valley takes center stage, April 26-29.
Last year's winner, Francisco Mancebo (ESP/Competitive Cyclist Racing Team) won the Tour of the Battenkill by two seconds over Jesse Anthony (Beverly, Mass./Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies) to wrestle the top spot in the NRC men's standings away from the previous standings leader, Phillip Gaimon (Ellicott City, Md./Kenda 5 Hour Energy p/b Geargrinder). Gaimon's 217 points are nine fewer than Mancebo, but 22 more than Patrick Bevin (NZL/Bissell Cycling), who sits in third. The next three riders in the standings compete for the Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies team as Michael Friedman (Superior, Colo.), Alexander Candelario (Reno, Nev.) and Anthony occupy fourth, fifth and sixth places, respectively. Friedman trails Bevin by 50 points with 145 while maintaining a 37-point cushion on Candelario, who is only three points ahead of Anthony.

There is a new leader in the NRC men's team standings as well. Bissell Cycling, who placed two riders in the top 10 in the Tour of Battenkill, has assumed the top spot with 390 points, 32 points ahead of Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies. Last week's standings leader, Kenda 5 Hour Energy p/b Geargrinder slipped to third in this week's standings, just three points behind Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies and 79 points ahead of fourth-place Competitive Cyclist Racing which, after Mancebo's win, flipped spots with California Giant Berry Farms-Specialized. California Giant Berry Farms-Specialized is 117 points out of fourth place.

Full results from the Tour of the Battenkill.

 

USA Cycling NRC Standings:

Men
1. Francisco Mancebo (ESP/Competitive Cyclist Racing Team) — 226
2. Phillip Gaimon (Ellicott City, Md./Kenda 5 Hour Energy p/b Geargrinder) — 217
3. Patrick Bevin (NZL/Bissell Cycling) — 195
4. Michael Friedman (Superior, Colo./Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies) — 145
5. Alexander Candelario (Reno, Nev./Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies) — 108

Women's Standings
1. Megan Guarnier (Mountain View, Calif./Team TIBCO-To the Top) — 237
2. Joelle Numainville (CAN/Optum Pro Cycling p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies) — 161
3. Alison Powers (Pinecliffe, Colo./NOW and Novartis for MS) — 155
4. Amber Neben (Lake Forest, Calif./Specialized-lululemon) — 108
5. Loren Rowney (AUS/Specialized-lululemon) — 101

Men's Team
1. Bissell Cycling — 390
2. Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies — 358
3. Kenda 5 Hour Energy p/b Geargrinder — 355
4. Competitive Cyclist Racing Team — 276
5. California Giant Berry Farms-Specialized — 159

Women's Team Standings
1. Team TIBCO-To the Top — 310
2. Optum Pro Cycling p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies — 290
3. NOW and Novartis for MS — 249
4. Exergy Twenty12 — 132
5. FCS-Rouse p/b Mr. Restore — 94
 

For complete standings, visit the NRC's official webpage at usacycling.org/nrc.

The NRC rolls on in 10 days with the four-day Joe Martin Stage Race p/b Nature Valley in Fayetteville, Ark., from April 26-29.

Photo caption: Mancebo takes over the NRC lead as the Joe Martin Stage Race p/b Nature Valley takes center stage, April 26-29.
Courtesy: Mitch Clinton/Tour of the Gila



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This Article Updated April 16, 2012 @ 05:13 PM For more information contact: