Tinkoff's Adam Blythe is the new British Road Race Champion.
Reigning champion Peter Kennaugh of Team Sky was one of those who did not take to the start of this 201km race, comprisingo of twelve laps of an 8.3-mile circuit before coming back for six laps of the finishing circuit in Stockton On Tees town centre.
British Time Trial Champion Alex Dowsett was one of the first to attack but was quickly reeled and JLT Condor’s Tom Moses, Pedal Heaven’s Dexter Gardias and Scott Auld of Zappi’s Racing Team built a 20 seconds lead over the bunch on the third lap of the main circuit.
Dowsett along with Alex Dowsett, NFTO’s Josh Hunt and Ed Bradbury, Madison Genesis’ Tobyn Horton and Pedal Heaven’s Rory Townsend were in the chasing group and were eighteen seconds down with 28 miles of the 128 miles gone.
The attacks continued and it was Elliot Ryan, Steve Lampier, Tom Moses, Mark Christian, Josh Teasdale, James Shaw, Alex Peters, Dexter Gardias, and Kristian House who were the new nine in the break with a lead of 34 seconds.
With seven laps left, the break has swelled to Tom Moses, Steve Lampier, Alex Peters, Elliot Porter, Dexter Gardias, James Shaw, Mark Christian, Kristian House, Adam Blythe George Atkins, Matt Holmes, Zach May, Scott Thwaites, Grufudd Lewis, Josh Teasdale and Dale Appleby and they took a lead of 1.35 which was soon whittled down to a minute.
This group of sixteen were chased by a group of twenty eight riders which included Mark Cavendish with the peloton now four minutes down.
Some of Cavendish's group were able to get to the front group and this meant that Mark Cavendish, Alex Dowsett, Tao Geoghegan Hart, Ian Bibby, Alex Paton, Chris Latham, Russ Downing, Mark McNally, Tom Moses, Steve Lampier, Alex Peters, Elliot Porter, Dexter Gardias, James Shaw, Mark Christian, Kristian House, Adam Blythe, Matt Holmes, Zach May, Scott Thwaites, Grufudd Lewis and Dale Appleby were in the lead of the race.
Hart, Peters, Blythe and Moses made a move which stuck and went 1.20 clear as the front group split with Mark Cavendish, Andy Fenn, Kristian House, Tom Stewart, Scott Thwaites, James Shaw and Mark McNally in the front chasing group.
The four stayed clear with a lead of 28 seconds with fifteen miles to go, as Cavendish and Lawless put in attacks to try and split the group they were in.
Cavendish and Scott Thwaites brought the front four back together and Tao Geoghegan Hart and Alex Peters got on the front and again tried to give themselves some distance.
Lawless and Cavendish brought them back so Peters tried again with Scott Thwaites going with him before they were brought back going into the final lap.
On the right hand side, Kristian House made a move but Lawless bought him back and was on the front on the final corner. Thwaite opened up the sprint and Cavendish and Adam Blythe went and it was Adam Blythe who won.ahead of Cavendish and Andy Fenn in 4.31.07.
Tao Geoghegan Hart is the U23 champion.