Cavendish and Doull Win London 6-Day Endurance Race

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Cavendish and Doull Win London 6-Day Endurance Race

Mark Cavendish and Owain Doull were aggressive in the final day's session at the London Velodrome to claim the overall Six Day London title.

The British pair greatly increased their chances of winning the Six Day London title in the final session on Sunday.

Cavendish missed out on overall wins in 2016 and 2017 and was unable to race last year due to illness. He is desperate for a win this time around, having finished runner-up twice at Six Day London with Bradley Wiggins and Peter Kennaugh.

The Manxman has endured a difficult 2019 season on the road, but is looking closer to his best and brighter now that he has been confirmed to ride for Bahrain-Merida in 2020.

Cavendish and Doull raced cautiously in the early stages of the six days in London, with Cavendish beating Elia Viviani twice in sprints (in the team elimination and in the final race in Madison), moving the British pair into the overall lead and boosting their hopes of an eventual overall win. ...

Cavendish and Dool took the overall lead with 395 points. World champions Theo Reinhardt and Max Bayer followed with 368 points, but on the same lap. Viviani and Simone Consonni are one lap behind with 399 points, while defending champions Yoeli Havik and Wim Stroettinga have 385 points. The result will set the stage for a thrilling final race with fascinating racing.

Cavendish held deep in the team battle with Viviani in hot pursuit, but the roles were reversed in the closing stages in Madison, where the Manxman beat the Italian and Max Beyer to take the win.

"I was almost at a standstill. With seven laps to go I was telling Owain, 'Rest, rest, rest. ' It worked. We're all tired, and it's day five already."

"When we attacked, it was to test how the week would go. I was trying to conserve my energy, do the same laps, and go aggressive at the end.

On Friday night, five teams were on the same lap, with Viviani and Conssoni leading in points. The Italians were a lap down in the 20-minute Madison, with Cavendish and Doull leading side by side. Cavendish then defeated his biggest rival to win the final race of the night.

The Italians looked to be joining forces with Reinhardt and Bayer for the win, but Doull joined them to police the move. Welshman Doull made a big turn before pushing past Cavendish on the final lap. Cavendish defeated Viviani, setting up a final showdown on Sunday evening.

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