Tour Down Under 2018: Peter Sagan wins People’s Choice Classic
THE rainbow jersey shone in all its glory in Adelaide last night as three-time reigning world champion Peter Sagan won the Tour Down Under’s People’s Choice Classic.
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THE rainbow jersey shone in all its glory in Adelaide last night as three-time reigning world champion Peter Sagan won the Tour Down Under’s People’s Choice Classic.
Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) came from a long way back in the home straight but showed his class to beat Andre Greipel (Lotto-Soudal) and Caleb Ewan (Mitchelton-Scott) on the line after the 51km criterium in the Adelaide East End.
Sagan’s victory after three second placings in last year’s TDU sets the scene for a mouth-watering week when the TDU proper begins with Stage 1 from Port Adelaide to Lyndoch on Tuesday.
“I didn’t expect that I could win today, for sure (I didn’t think I had the form), it was more about positioning,” Sagan said.
“I’m very happy, I was okay (in the finale) but some guys came from the back and closed me a bit but in the end it went very well.
“They (teammates) did a very good job, maybe they went a bit too early and I was hiding behind but it was ok.
“I’m very happy to be here again, it’s nice weather and will be very good for my conditioning, it’s good preparation.”
Earlier a group of seven riders went clear in the first five laps and they built a 50-second lead before Lotto-Soudal’s Thomas De Gendt and Mitchelton-Scott’s Damien Howson went to the front of the peloton to try to bring them back.
The breakaway group became six riders of Tom Bohli (BMC), Manuele Boaro (Bahrain-Merida), Jhonatan Restrepo (Katusha), Fumoyuki Beppu (Trek), Zak Dempster and Tim Roe (UniSA) who were eventually reeled in with five laps remaining.
The sprinters’ teams then began fighting for position at the front of the bunch and Bora-Hansgrohe took control for Sagan, Quick-Step Floors for Elia Viviani and Lotto-Soudal for Greipel.
Bora-Hansgrohe was on the front at the final lap and although Ewan and Greipel jumped early and looked headed for victory, Sagan cruised up in between them and had time to salute the crowd as he crossed the line.
Caleb Ewan said he didn’t time his sprint quite right but took confidence going into the rest of the week.
“It was a pretty tough one, I think it got a little bit muddled up in the end and we lost Alex (Edmondson) early on so we were a man down for a bit,” Ewan said.
“But I started my sprint a bit too early and there was more of a headwind than I thought it was going to be, and when it started to go up a bit I really started to feel it.
“He (Sagan) looks in good form, we always knew he would be one to watch and they’ve got two cards to play with Sam (Bennett) and himself.
“I feel pretty confident, for the sprints we have a stronger team than the last few years so I’m really confident in them.
“Tonight to see which guys are going good, I know which ones to look out for.”
PEOPLE’S CHOICE CLASSIC
51km Adelaide CBD
1. Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) 1hr 4mins 25secs
2. Andre Greipel (Lotto-Soudal) same time
3. Caleb Ewan (Mitchelton-Scott) same time
4. Elia Viviani (Quick-Step Floors) same time
5. Simone Consonni (UAE Emirates) same time
Originally published as Tour Down Under 2018: Peter Sagan wins People’s Choice Classic