2012 UCI World Cup Pietermaritzburg Downhill Results 4

The season is officially underway! Knowing that the South Africa downhill course was one of the most physically demanding races they'll do all year, riders worked hard during the off season in preparation for the opening round of the 2012 UCI World Cup Series. Despite looming rain clouds and a heavy downpour yesterday evening, the course remained dry for the duration of the race. Following a week of build up and a winter's worth of intensive training and preparation, here's a look at how the times shook down.

If you missed the live broadcast, the replay is available here.

Men's Highlights and Results:

When the top 30 qualifiers took to the course, Brendan Fairclough was sitting in the hot seat. The lead would quickly change, however, as Fabien Cousine, Neko Mulally, and Julien Camellini soon took their turns in spotlight. When Bryn Atkinson came down he was fastest at the top split, but lost a bit of time during the pedally section of the course. Sam Hill mixed things up a bit on his flat pedals when he came down the hill in 2nd and would end up 11th on the day. Danny Hart will have his work cut out for him this season after an unfortunate slide out near the top of the course that set him clear back into 41st. This race marked Steve Peat's 100th World Cup race, and at just 38 years young he came down the hill in 5th place but was pushed back into 15th when all was said and done.

With just 10 riders to go, Camellini was still in the lead, but hometown hero Andrew Neethling was fueled by loud cheers and busted into the hot seat by nearly a full second. Jared Graves was the next to take the lead and one of the strongest riders in the grueling mid-section of the track. It's interesting to note that Graves opted for the aluminum version of his Yeti downhill bike for the finals. 

Just before the top 5 qualifiers started, Sick Mick Hannah lit the course on fire coming down into the lead by 5 seconds! Gee Atherton was comparatively slow at the top split, but made some impressive gains near the bottom of the course and came down just behind Hannah. Steve Smith also shined at the bottom but was unable to crack the pace set by Hannah. Then came Aaron Gwin, who was able to slide into the lead by just a few tenths of a second. With just one rider left to go, all eyes were on South Africa's most successful downhiller, Greg Minnaar. After a sixth place top split, Minnaar hit the turbo button, giving it everything he had. The crowd went absolutely bonkers when he crossed the finish line with the fastest time of the day, and Minnaar was immediately swarmed by friends and family.

With Rachel Atherton, Floriane Pugin, and Sabrina Jonnier all out due to injuries, the women's race was anyone's game. Recent 4X crossover Anita Molcik set the pace early on, but Manon Carpenter soon threw down the gauntlet. Carpenter had some really good split times during qualifiers and was able to put together an impressive 2nd place run today. First place qualifier and former Junior World Champ Tracey Hannah stole the show when she came down into the lead.

When everyone heals up, it'll be an interesting battle this year in the women's field!