Matteo Cigala Watts battle with Mark Dowling
Matteo Cigala put out huge Watts in the attacking session at the end of the Brian McNamara Memorial; round 4 of the National Series.
Matteo Cigala has explained the power output required to see off Mark Dowling and win the latest round of the National Road Series.
The Aqua Blue Academy rider is leading the Cycling Ireland rankings and has been one of the men of the year so far.
He was in a breakaway coming to the finish of the Brian McNamara Memorial in Tuam, Co Galway, on Sunday.
That group comprised some very strong riders including Mark Dowling (Strata 3-Velo Revolution); the leader of the series.
Conn McDunphy (Lucan CRC) and Craig Rea (Phoenix CC) were also present when the six-man group came down to four.
And with a ‘classic’ victory there for the taking, the attacks came thick and fast on the run-in.
Advertisement
Cigala, who is very fast in a sprint, was forced to respond to each attack before taking the win.
Mark Dowling beats off Matteo Cigala at the Annaclone GP earlier this year. But it was Cigala who prevailed on Sunday in Tuam.
He said his power file reflected his efforts, showing repeated deep digs on his part.
Related News
“In the last 25 minutes I saw spikes of over 700 watts 25 times on my power data,” he said.
“We were down to just four on that last lap and they attacked basically every minute in those last 25.
“But I was able to close all the gaps and was able to win the sprint of four guys.”
He emerged victorious from Dowling, Rea and McDunphy, in that order.
Having enjoyed a very strong season to date, Sunday’s victory was the Italian’s first National Road Series win.
“This was my main goal for June, after the Rás, but I didn’t come into it as well as I would have liked,” he said.
“On the last three days of the Rás, I got very sick, and 10 days after that I had an exam.
"So my focus was on study and I didn’t really go out on the bike at all.
“Every time I was out, it was just for coaching my clients, and even then, I felt terrible.
“Last Sunday, racing in Dunboyne, I struggled to finish. But today, I felt good again for the first time.”
Dowling still leads the national series by 12 points from Cigala, with McDunphy in 3rd place.
Topics
