Javan Nulty emerges from strong breakaway to take great win at Cicli Sport GP

Javan Nulty (leading) got clear in a large breakaway and then forged ahead again to take his first win of 2013 (Photo: Darren Crawford)

One of the emerging young talents on the Irish scene in the past season or two, Javan Nulty made the trip north of the border worthwhile today, Saturday, when he took a really strong win in the Cicli Sport GP.

The DID Dunboyne rider was among a breakaway of around a dozen riders that forged clear of the field in the main event for A1s and A2s when the two categories merged after a handicapped start in Co Tyrone.

Going out onto the last lap the breakaway had a gap of just under one minute on the bunch and a game of cat and mouse started before a number of attacks were put in to try and break up the large group.

It contained some very strong riders including: Gary Jeffers of the promoting club East Tyrone; the Eurocycles duo of Conor Murphy and Thomas Martin; the Audi East Antrim pair, Gary Cranston and Glenn Kinning; Brian McKinny (Duffin Transport); Conor McIlwaine (Errigal CC); Stevie McKenna (Omagh Wheelers) and others.

During the attacking of that last lap, Nulty got away in a three-man move that was to prove the winning escape. He was accompanied in that by Gary Cranston and Thomas Martin.

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The trio arrived at the finish together with Nulty taking a strong win and Cranston closet to him in second, with Martin a distant third.

The win today by Nulty comes on the back of a strong performance from him last weekend when he rode a similar race in the Newbridge GP in Co Kildare; going clear in the main breakaway before being part of a strongman quartet that pushed on to fight for the win.

On that occasion he was 3rd, with victory there going to his team mate of last year Mark Dowling. He has progressed to the UCI Continental ranked team Polygon Sweet Nice and is currently in Taiwan to ride the Tour of Taiwan with his new squad.

Today’s winner is clearly benefitting from his full-time approach to the sport, having trained for much of the winter with Dowling in Lanzarote.

Nulty beat some good riders today, with Martin and Cranston both very experienced and strong campaigners, and Conor Murphy and Gary Jeffers both having won races already this year.

Murphy won the Cycleways Cup in Navan, Co Meath, two weeks ago and was second in the McCann Cup last weekend. Jeffers has been in flying form so far this season, taking the McCann Cup last weekend and the Hewitt & Gilpin Phoenix GP in Crumlin three weeks ago.