DESPITE winning a giant pork pie last Sunday, Tom Moses admits that he is going into this weekend’s Tour de Yorkshire undercooked.

JLT Condor rider Moses, who turns 25 next Wednesday, has suffered injury and illness since a warm-weather training camp in Majorca in February.

But the Keighley cyclist is back in the saddle and determined to put on a good show in front of his home crowd.

He said: “I was injured during the Tour of Normandy in late March and then got a chest infection back in Yorkshire but I have managed to get in a couple of events back in England.”

The Oakworth man was 33rd in the Chorley Grand Prix just under a fortnight ago, which was won by team-mate Ian Bibby, and 28th in last Sunday’s Rutland-Melton International CiCLE Classic, where Condor colleague Brenton Jones was third.

However, Moses won a giant pork pie (for being the first rider to cross the line in Melton with one lap to go) and some beers in what has been dubbed Britain’s Belgian Classic.

He said: "The pork pie was the size of a cake tin, but, being the good team man that I am, I shared it and the beers with the boys!"

Moses will be competing in his third Tour de Yorkshire, and is looking forward to it just as much as the other two.

Today's 173-kilometre opening stage is from Bridlington to Scarborough, with tomorrow's 122.5km second stage from Tadcaster to Harrogate.

However, it is the 194.5km third stage, dubbed the 'Yorkshire Terrier', on Sunday from Bradford to Sheffield which has captured the imagination of public and riders alike.

Taking in Saltaire, Ilkley, Addingham, Bolton Abbey, Skipton, Keighley, Haworth, Halifax, Holmfirth and Penistone, it is the hardest stage since the Tour began in 2015, with a highlight likely to be Shibden Wall, near Halifax at about 3pm.

Moses said: "I won't be as fit as I could have been, due to the injury in the Tour of Normandy and a chesty cough that I picked up when I got back to Yorkshire, but it is good that they are taking the race to new places, such as Bradford.

"We looked at stage three as a squad earlier this spring, and the crowds for the Tour de Yorkshire are always fantastic.

"The climb up the cobbles at Haworth is about a mile from my home.

"The Shibden Wall is going to be interesting, but it is still a long way from the finish of the stage.

"My job will be to try and help Ian Bibby, Alex Frame and Brenton Jones do well."

East Morton's Annie Simpson is taking part in the women's race on Saturday, which starts at Tadcaster at 9am and is expected to finish in Harrogate at 12.30pm.

There will be TV coverage on all three days, either on ITV 4 or Eurosport 2, including the women's race.