There will be new male and female winners this weekend in the Butterfield Grand Prix with champions Tom Barras and Deanne Thomson not competing in this year’s three-day spectacle.With the date for the Grand Prix changed to this weekend from November, Barras won’t be able to make the trek from England while Thomson has moved to Canada with husband Garth since her 2009 triumph.In the absence of Flora Duffy, who is not competing, Nicole Mitchel will be going into the female race as a strong contender.The Grand Prix will comprise of three races over the three days, beginning tonight with the St. George’s time trial at 6 pm.Tomorrow will see the riders travel to Morgan’s Point for the circuit race, beginning at 9 am for the Male ‘A’ riders and ending with the junior female and male races.The final hurdle of the Grand Prix will be the Hamilton Criterium, in which each category rides the course for their required period of time before ending with one final lap after their allocated time is finished.While both titles are now up for grabs, Bermuda Bicycle Association (BBA) president Peter Dunne said he couldn’t pinpoint a specific favourite in the race, although he would lean towards one of the Team Madison or Bicycle Works team members.Both teams recently competed in the Battle of Battenkill in New York.“Tom won’t be back this year as far as I know, the race was usually done in the fall and we switched it this year, so I doubt he will be here in time to race,” said Dunne.“Also Deanne has since move overseas with her husband Garth and won’t be returning.“As for the favourites, we are just opening the 2011 road season and it is difficult to gauge everyone’s fitness. The local racers have been training over the winter and the racing scene will be very competitive this spring.“With Bicycle Works and Madison riders fresh off the Battenkill trip they will be going head-to-head.“The Winners Edge group has been focusing their training on the Butterfield GP for several months now.“This will make for very exciting and competitive racing.“We also welcome back our title sponsor, Butterfield, a full service community bank and a provider of specialised international financial services, for a second year.