Fontana wins Bundesliga opener by one second ahead of Hermida

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Marco Aurelio Fontana (Cannondale Factory Racing) and Elisabeth Brandau (Central Haibike Pro Cycling) won the 25th edition of Mountain Bike Spring Classic in Münsingen, Germany, on Sunday. In front of a big crowd, Fontana won a close duel with world champion Jose Antonio Hermida (Multivan Merida Biking Team) while Brandau took her first ever win ahead of Annika Langvad (Easton Rockets) and Sabine Spitz (Central Haibike Pro Cycling) in an exciting women's competition.

Hermida put pressure on the initial five-man lead group and Fontana followed the Spaniard off the front. Jochen Käss (Multivan Merida Biking Team) tried to follow but couldn't, and he fell back into the chase group where he joined Swiss riders Martin Fanger (Giant Swiss SR-Suntour) and Martin Gujan (Cannondale Factory Racing).

Hermida and Fontana's escape came in the middle of the race and the two did battle for the remainder of the race. Going into lap seven they were together, but then Hermida's rear tire started to go flat.

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Hermida was able to hang on to Fontana's wheel despite the lower air pressure from the slow leak, but didn't have enough to attack him. Fontana went on to take the win.

"I thought I could make it today. It was so close, even with the slowly leaking tire," said Hermida.

Fontana was cheered by the crowds as he crossed the line with a wheelie in spite of Hermida being close behind him.

"I'm lucky to win here. It was a hard but fair fight with José," said Fontana. Two years ago, during his first appearance in Münsingen, Fontana had crashed and then Hermida had crashed into him.

Gujan, a two-time previous winner, earned the third spot on the podium, 21 seconds behind Fontana. He surprised some by beating Fanger. Käss took the final podium spot.

Pre-race favorite Manuel Fumic (Cannondale Factory Racing) had two early incidences of chain suck and lost his chance to finish on the podium.

An awesome day for Brandau

The women's competition turned into a race with four main contenders. Sabine Spitz took the lead in the beginning of the race and her efforts helped build the quartet's lead. Elisabeth Brandau, Annika Langvad and Blaza Klemencic (Felt Oetztal X-Bionic Team) joined Spitz, leaving Lisi Osl (Ghost Factory Racing Team) and Katrin Leumann (Ghost Factory Racing Team) behind.

These four lead women gave an exciting race, attacking at almost every corner, changing positions all the time. At one point, Langvad took too many risks and went over her handlebars. Brandau had to stop, while Spitz and Klemencic were able to pass.

But Brandau and later also Langvad caught back up and at the beginning of the last lap, all four were still in the game. Brandau and Langvad got a small gap, but the lead changed several times.

About 700 meters before the finish, Brandau made the last maneuver, passing Langvad while riding over some wavy terrain. She held onto her lead and celebrated her win in front of a cheering crowd. It was her first ever win in a major cross country race.

"It was awsome today. We were fighting really aggressive and I'm really happy to get the win," said Brandau.

Brandau's Central Haibike teammate Spitz finished third, only 11 seconds behind. "The teamwork was fine. We knew that Lisa was in good shape," said Spitz. "For myself, I tried not to go over the limit six days before Pietermaritzburg World Cup."

Langvad wasn't too disappointed. "Today my plan was not to escape. I wanted to get into the fight with the other girls, and I learned a lot," said Langvad.

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