AYDEN Toovey and his New South Wales Institute of Sport team-mates delivered on their aim to make the men’s division one Bathurst criterium a brutal affair on Saturday night.
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Before Toovey clinched the win on the new Kings Parade course, the field of 72 had been reduced to just 11 riders.
Toovey and his team-mates Dylan Sunderland and Josh Taylor were the main aggressors in the race, which ran for an hour then three additional laps.
Sunderland led the way down the back straight on the final lap with Toovey on his wheel, the Mudgee native then launching and holding off a late challenge from young talent Stephen Cuff.
Reece Robinson snagged third, with Taylor and Sunderland in fourth and fifth respectively.
“We’ve been doing this the last four years and saw there was a change of course for the crit, and we just wanted to make it a really brutal race,” Toovey said.
“We wanted to make it as hard as possible and if it did come to a sprint finish, whoever was feeling the best would go for it. We just went from there.
“Dylan did an awesome lead out for me. He [Cuff] did get a bit close to me at the end, I thought it was Dylan, then I was squeezing. He was coming and coming, but luckily the line came.
“The course was pretty good, it brings out so many more spectators, which is what cycling needs.”
Meanwhile, the honours in the men’s division two race went to Sydney Velo rider Nathan Bonarius, who out sprinted Andrew East (Lidcombe-Auburn).
