BENTONVILLE — Cole Paton (Giant-RCC) and Candice Lill (Thömus maxon – Sabi Sabi) claimed solo victories at Little Sugar MTB in Bentonville, Arkansas on Sunday, winning the elite races over the 64-mile (100km) course. Paton stopped the clock in 4:06:38 to win the men's race, while reigning South African XCO champion Lill won the women's race in 4:54:47 as the Life Time Grand Prix entered its final stretch with one event remaining in the six-race series.
Paton was part of an early group of seven who set the pace through the opening 15 miles before attacking on the Back 40 trail over the final 24 miles and holding off the chase. Bradyn Lange (Canyon x DT Swiss All-Terrain Racing) finished 1:12 behind for second, with two-time MTB Marathon world champion Andreas Seewald a further 2:35 back in third. "There is so much room for a mechanical or puncture at Little Sugar MTB, so I wanted to ride smart, efficiently, and not take any unnecessary risks, as it’s not over until it’s over," Paton told organisers at the finish. "To get maximum Life Time Grand Prix points today is huge, and I knew I had to do as well as I possibly could in these two final races of the Series, so hopefully that helps me move up [the overall leaderboard], but the win transcends that. I’m proud that I pulled it together today."
Lill rode solo for 55 miles to take the women's win, holding more than two minutes with 30 miles to go before Melisa Rollins (Liv Racing Collective) closed to within eight seconds alongside Madigan Munro and Hannah Otto (Scott Sport USA). Lill then powered clear on the technical 'Ledges' section to win by 2:20 from Rollins, with Otto another 4:15 back in third. "Little Sugar MTB is nothing like what I’ve raced before; with about 90% singletrack, it was really fun, but the terrain is tough, rolling, and you have to keep a lot of focus, so anyone who crosses the finish line has done a really good job. That was a really big day out; I was just waiting for the finish line during the last 10 miles," Lill said. "I lost a lot of air in my tyre [after hitting something], so there I was doing damage control until I could swap my wheel. It was great to race Melisa [Rollins], and it’s a great addition to my MTB World Series racing this year." Lill, who won the Cape Epic title with Alessandra Keller in March, managed the late tyre issue to secure the victory.
The results tightened the Life Time Grand Prix standings. In the men's series, Lange moved to within six points of leader Keegan Swenson (Specialized Off-road), with Australian Brendan Johnston (Giant) — fourth on the day at 7:20 — a further four points back in third, while Seewald sits seventh and race winner Paton climbed to fifth. Canadian Owen Clark (Pivot Cycles-ENVE) finished fifth at 9:39 on his return this year after spinal fusion surgery in the winter after being struck by a driver of a car, while last year's winner Cameron Jones (Scott Sports USA - RCC) finished 18th and remains tied for ninth with Cobe Freeburn (Trek Driftless).
In the women's standings, Rollins earned the top points haul among series contenders with second place and climbed into the top 10, while Alexis Skarda (Q36.5 Off Road Racing), Hayley Preen (Factor Racing) and New Zealand's Samara Sheppard followed in fourth through sixth to move into the series top 12. Cecily Decker (PAS Racing) finished eighth and sits second overall, 13 points behind leader Sofia Gomez Villafañe (Specialized Off-road), who was absent in Bentonville while competing at the UCI Gravel World Championships in Australia and used Little Sugar as her drop race.