Dan Monaghan - British Cycling National Circuit Race Championships

Conquista loves criterium racing. Multiple laps of high-speed action, in a convenient city-centre location close to beer, doughnuts and public transport: what's not to like?

This year alone we've covered rounds of the Pearl Izumi Tour Series in Edinburgh, Durham, Stoke-on-Trent and Croydon, plus the London Nocturne and the Prudential RideLondon Classique - and look out for a special feature on the London round of the Red Hook Crit in Conquista issue 12.

So we were excited last Thursday when the country’s top male & female criterium racers headed for Birmingham to contest the British Cycling National Circuit Race Championships over a 1.1km city centre circuit.

Before the event it was widely expected that the sternest competition to men’s champion Ian Bibby of NFTO would come from Chris Lawless of JLT Condor – and so it proved, as Lawless led two of his team mates home for a JLT Condor sweep of the podium.

Women’s jersey holder Nikki Juniper of Ford Ecoboost was coming off a spectacularly successful 2016 season, having secured the British Cycling Women’s Road Series title with a full three races still to ride. On the night, however, despite a spirited performance, she could only manage third behind new champion Eileen Roe of Lares-Waowdeals Women Cycling Team and second-placed Alice Barnes of Drops Cycling. Claire Rose of Podium Ambition delivered a powerful turn on the front in the last fifteen minutes of the race, ensuring that no meaningful attack could develop. The title is Roe’s second after the Scot took the jersey in 2014.

Photographer Dan Monaghan was in Birmingham to cover the event exclusively for Conquista.

You can find more of Dan's spectacular work, in the form of his shots of 2016's edition of Paris-Roubaix, in Conquista issue 11 - available now from the link below.