Jayco Herald Sun Tour: Team Sky brutalises rivals on return to the summit

TEAM Sky has got back to business. Back to following race plans to the letter, back to executing to perfection and back to inflicting pain on its rivals.

Britain's Chris Froome (L) of Team Sky leads the field up a small climb on stage one of the 2016 Herald Sun Tour cycling race, Healesville to Healesville, in Victoria on February 4, 2016. AFP PHOTO / MAL FAIRCLOUGH -- IMAGE STRICTLY RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - STRICTLY NO COMMERCIAL USE --

TEAM Sky has got back to business.

Back to following race plans to the letter, back to executing to perfection and back to inflicting pain on its rivals.

In the boardroom of world cycling there’s not many rivals who can live with the boys from the top end of town when they turn the screws.

On Thursday the Jayco Herald Sun Tour and its Australian yellow jersey holder Will Clarke felt the full force of the ‘Sky Train’ at the business end of the 126.1km Stage 1 around Healesville.

Clarke, Drapac’s likeable Tasmanian journeyman who was so impressive in back-to-back CBD prologue wins on Wednesday night, was “hopeful” of still being in yellow on Thursday evening.

After all, there were a couple of climbs, but nothing too drastic and certainly no summit finish.

But when the 192cm, 81kg big man saw Sky start to mobilise on the front of the peloton at the base of the final climb up Myers Creek Road, he knew he was in big trouble.

“They put the whole team on the front and pretty much rode the entire peloton off their wheels. It was a pretty strong display really,” Clarke said later.

Peter Kennaugh claimed the yellow jersey after winning stage one of the Herald Sun Tour.

“They were fairly going up there.”

Sky’s Italian workhorse Salvatore Puccio and Colombian climber Sebastian Henao had softened the field with relentless efforts. With the peloton on its knees, Tour de France champion Chris Froome turned on the jets and it was ‘good night nurse’.

Clarke could only watch as the yellow jersey was ripped off his back. He crossed the finish line in the third group on the road, some three minutes behind new race leader Kennaugh and Froome.

“I sort of expected it,” he said.

“I sort of got ‘dagged’ from the chase group behind them a couple of kilometres from the top. I tried to chase back on, but it was a bit hard.

Will Clarke had his yellow jersey ripped off him by Team Sky.

“Seeing as Kennaugh is in pretty good shape after winning the Cadel race and Froome is probably the strongest bike rider in the world, so if they’re going one-two then it’s hard.

“I was just hanging on. I’m a big guy so I’m having to push a lot more watts than them. I’m certainly not a climber.”

Kennaugh, who admitted he rode with freedom in his Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race win, said yesterday’s stage was methodical.

“Today was a bit more controlled and a bit more planned,” Kennaugh said.

“Last weekend was just about racing and getting out there, but today was back to work and back to business. We had a strategy and it just worked.”