Darlington's Keith Murray pulled off a weekend double including success in the Stockton Wheelers event.

The Scott UK team rider left challengers from Cumbria and Yorkshire trailing to win the Team Swift-Allsports 25-mile event over a course on the A1 between Dishforth and Leeming Bar.

He clocked 53min 42sec to finish with 17 seconds to spare over Ulverston's Paul O'Mahoney, one of only two riders in the country to have beaten 20 minutes for ten miles so far this season. Yorkshire veteran Brian Jennings was a further 1min 12sec off the pace in third place.

Murray went on to win Stockton Wheelers' event, round five of the Teesside CA SPOCO (sporting courses) series, over a 23-mile circuit based on Bishopton. He covered two laps of a circuit taking in Sadberge and Redmarshall in 52min 41sec to finish with 1min 50sec in hand over former North-East road race champion Billy Mitchinson, of Bannatyne CRT, who had won the previous round at Hamsterley.

Murray had also finished ahead of Mitchinson in Cleveland Wheelers' Teesside SPOCO event at the beginning of March, but with two wins and two second places Mitchinson is still in the driving seat.

Bannatyne's Steve Gibson was a further 1min 14sec down in third place in the Stockton event, while team victory went to the Ferryhill Wheelers trio of Steve Davies (57-31), Andrew Watson (58-07) and Paul Gittins (1-04-26).

Mitchinson had also been beaten into second place in Tyne Valley CC's circuit time trial over an 19-mile course at Ponteland the previous day.

Victory went to David Bell, of Derwentside CC, whose 39-23 was 46 seconds too fast for Mitchinson. Geoff Mount (Bannatyne CRT) took third place in 40-43.

The intense rivalry between the Recycling.co.uk-MG Xpower and Planet X teams continued in the Metaltek Grand Prix, over a 96-mile course near Melton Mowbray, when Dean Downing gained the verdict for a second year from his breakaway rival and fellow Yorkshireman Kevin Dawson.

l Recycling.co.uk-MG Xpower, Britain's biggest professional team which includes Stockton's world track gold medallist Chris Newton, has confirmed that they will continue racing despite the collapse of talks between MG Rover and the Shanghai Motor Corporation.

The team is backed by MG Sport and Racing Ltd, a stand-alone motor sports and performance company which will continue to provide financial and vehicle support for the riders under the MG Xpower brand.

l Gary McBean led the new Adept Precision RT to four of the top six places in Cleveland Wheelers' ten-mile TT on the Crathorne course.

McBean covered the out-and-home course in 23min 49sec to beat his team-mate Shaun Tyson by 15 seconds. McBean's fellow veteran Steve Davies (Ferryhill Wheelers) was a further four seconds off the pace.