John Murphy upstages stars to win stage 3 of Jacyo Herald Sun Tour

AMERICAN cyclist John Murphy has been here before without giving cycling fans cause to remember his name — but that changed on Saturday.

6 February 2016: American cyclist John Murphy narrowly wins Stage 3 of the 2016 Herald Sun Tour. Picture: METARACE

AMERICAN cyclist John Murphy has been here a couple of times before without giving cycling fans much cause to remember his name — but that changed in dramatic ­fashion on Saturday.

Murphy upstaged all the better-known stars — including race leader Peter Kennaugh, marquee man Chris Froome and the in-form Caleb Ewan — to win the longest stage of the Jayco Tour by a whisker from Italy’s Niccolo Bonifazio.

That’s an appropriate description of the margin — the burly, red-headed Murphy is easily identifiable by a beard of the same hue — which took a minute for officials to confirm in a photo finish. Even Murphy wasn’t sure about it.

“Normally in a photo finish you know you’re beat, but you don’t know if you’ve won,” he said. “Bonifazio knew he had lost so that’s what gave it away for me.”

It was a toss-up who was more excited by the thrilling climax — the winner, or the big crowd that gathered on the picturesque foreshore at Inverloch.

With plenty of other spectators lining the roads along the 146.2km journey from Traralgon in perfect weather for bike-racing or any other sport, the 63rd edition of Australia’s oldest stage race is proving to be one of the most successful — and another big turnout is expected for the denouement on Arthurs Seat.

Murphy, 31, who rides for the American United Health Care team, is far from the best known rider in the peloton, but he is no L-plater and has a healthy reputation as a sprinter.

He spent two years with World Tour team BMC in 2010 and 2011, where he was a teammate of Australia’s greatest road racer Cadel Evans, and his CV includes a win in the Tour of Taiwan in 2008, the American criterium championship the next year, and the Joe Martin stage race in the US last year.

From a small town in North Carolina called Horseshoe, population 2000 or so, he has plenty of confidence and was not daunted by the challenge of outsprinting Ewan, the winner of the previous day’s stage and hot favourite to make it two in a row.

“If you have the right team in front of you, you can win anything,” he said.

American cyclist John Murphy narrowly wins Stage 3 of the 2016 Herald Sun Tour.

In a tricky finish that required the riders to negotiate a left turn 300m from the finish, Murphy knew it was vital to start the sprint ahead of Ewan, and his team delivered him to the front at precisely the right point.

But Ewan had been telling no fibs when he let it be known overnight that he was becoming tired after his stunning start to the year — and the plentiful challenges to Murphy came from elsewhere.

“I had to just go boom and hold it to the line,” he said.

Murphy is familiar with the Tour because he rode it at the start of his pro career a decade ago, and again last year.

Asked what the win meant, in one breath he called it “just another jersey”, but then said it was “super important.”

“Every win is different. It’s all about the guys I’m racing with. I’m really pulling it out for them. Every win is really special to me,” he said.