The Mountain Bike World Cup moves from northern Europe to the southern climes of Madrid for round three in the cross-country series this weekend.

While the downtown location and non-technical circuit differs from the previous two races in Houffalize, Belgium, and Offenburg, Germany, one thing that has not changed is the continuing good weather that is expected for Sunday.

For competitors, Madrid is a long, dusty, hot and very fast race. A number of riders have already commented on the similarity of certain portions of the circuit to the Olympic course in Beijing, so this may provide a good preview of who can expect to do well in August. Men are slated to do seven laps and the women five. Field sizes are also down sharply ─ with 147 men and 81 women registered.

Mary McConneloug is second in the U.S. women's battle for Olympic spots

Photo: Rob Jones

Ball-bearing sized gravel in some sections are affecting the ability to ride some steep sections, and men's World Cup leader Julien Absalon (Orbea) is one of a number of riders who have crashed in downhill corners during training. The nearly eight-kilometer circuit features a number of steep technical climbs and descents, but these are interspersed with fast, flat sections on pavement-hard dirt. Good positioning on the opening lap is critical, especially for the men's race, since a lead group forms quickly, and it is almost impossible to bridge up if you don't make the initial cut.

For the women's race there will be a crucial absence from the start, World Cup leader and world champion Irina Kalentieva (Topeak Ergon). Kalentieva, who won last weekend in Offenburg, has developed a chest infection and has not registered for Sunday’s race. Her team issued a statement that Kalentieva suffered from allergies after last week's race, and has since come down with a cold.

"I am on antibiotics and so I need a break," said Kalentieva in the team release. “My nose is stuffed up and I cannot breathe. I want to be healthy as fast as possible, and I am now concentrating on the European Championships [in St. Wendel, Germany, in two weeks]."

With the absence of such a dominant rider, there will be a real battle for both the race victory and the World Cup overall lead. Chengyuan Ren (China), the winner of round one in Houffalize, and Canada's Marie-Helene Premont (Rocky Mountain) ─ third in Houffalize and second last week ─ are favorites to take the overall World Cup lead, but Marga Fullana (Massi) has always done well in front of her compatriots and could take the win.

"This course isn't as good for me as the technical ones," commented Premont "but I hope that it is a long hard race because that will suit me better than Marga [Fullana], because she always [fades] in the longer races."

Other North Americans that are close to cracking the podium are Luna teammates Georgia Gould and Catharine Pendrel. Both have top-10 finishes in the first two events (a fifth for Gould in Houffalize and an eighth for Pendrel in Offenburg), and both have come close to making the front split. Maybe this will be the week that they do.

For the men, as always, the prohibitive favorite is Absalon. The elegant Frenchman is two-for-two so far this year, and has literally been riding away at will from the rest of the top men. However, other perennial favorites José Hermida (Multivan Merida) and Christoph Sauser (Specialized) have suffered some misfortune in previous races, with Hermida having to deal with stolen bikes, mechanicals and sickness, while Sauser has had poor starts and then been forced to chase his way up through the extremely large fields.

Hermida, for one, is healthy now, and anxious to do well on his home course before a home crowd, at an event he has never won.

"Yes, you could say that I smell a little pressure," he agrees. "This course doesn't suit me so much; I prefer the more technical circuits like Houffalize or Offenburg, but I still think that I can have a chance."

Craig says his new glasses are his "secret weapon"

Photo: Rob Jones

Sauser has been given the nod by a number of riders as the one to watch, since the Swiss rider does well in long, hot marathon-like races.

On the North American side, the top contenders are Americans Adam Craig (Giant) and Todd Wells (GT), and Canadians Seamus McGrath (Fuji) and Geoff Kabush (Maxxis). All have top-15 results this year, with Craig and McGrath both cracking the top-10 in Offenburg last weekend.

Craig is sporting a long bandage down his right forearm, the result of a moment’s inattention during a training ride, but says it shouldn't affect his riding. Kabush, who has had mixed luck in European campaigns in past years, is very upbeat about how this season has started.

Kabush shows off his sub-19-pound hardtail

Photo: Rob Jones

"Yeah, some previous years it’s been pretty up and down, but we spent a lot of time planning this [trip] over the winter, and it has definitely made a difference,” said Kabush. “The team has been looking after us well and we've made good travel plans, and found good locations to stay. This year I have a road bike over with me, which has helped for training between races."

Kabush plans to use what his mechanic refers to as "the Kabush Rocket" in Madrid, a sub-19 pound hardtail.

"It's lighter than my 'cross bike," he said.