Italian rider Matteo Bono (Lampre ISD) scooped a fine WorldTour stage victory in Genk when he outsprinted breakaway companions Sergey Renov (Astana) and Artem Ovechkin (Katusha). The trio attacked 59 kilometres into a wet 187 kilometre penultimate stage of the Eneco Tour and, riding well together ahead of a Sky Procycling-led peloton, had just enough of an advantage to stay clear until the end.
Renov launched the sprint and dragged Bono clear of a tiring Ovechkin. The Italian rider then kicked hard to come around and win decisively. Ovechkin rolled in three seconds back, while Tomas Vaitkus (Astana ) and Kenny van Hummel (Skil-Shimano) led in the chase group six seconds back.
Overnight leader Edvald Boasson Hagen (Sky Procycling) finished outside the top ten yet retained his overall lead. He remains twelve seconds clear of Philippe Gilbert (Omega Pharma Lotto), but dropped some time to the third- and fourth-placed riders, David Millar (Garmin-Cervélo) and Taylor Phinney (BMC Racing Team).
They gained three and eight seconds respectively, and ended the day 15 and 19 seconds back.
“My team controlled it the same way today. They let a group go clear and they didn’t have to worry about the sprints…it was perfect from us today,” Boasson Hagen said after the finish. “It was a plan for us to just keep them [the break] within two minutes and not to chase them. It worked really well today.”
Three riders play things out perfectly:
A total of 157 riders lined out at the start, with two choosing not to sign on . These were Garmin-Cervélo riders Tyler Farrar and Gabriel Rasch, who will both line out tomorrow in the Olympic test event to be held in London.
Gilbert’s team-mate André Greipel won the first intermediate sprint, twenty kilometres after the start in Genk. He beat Taylor Phinney and Ben Swift (Sky Procycling). The speed was high and the riders covered 49 kilometres in the first hour of racing.
Ten kilometres after that, Ovechkin, Renev and Bono attacked and started building their advantage. Wet conditions dissuaded the bunch from chasing too hard. Ovechkin beat Bono and Renev to take the second intermediate sprint (km 128), experiencing mechanical problems soon afterwards but getting back on. With 50 kilometres to go, the trio were two minutes 40 seconds clear.
Renev then finished ahead of the other two in the third gallop, 43 kilometres from the finish. Soon after that, Johan Van Summeren (Garmin-Cervélo) and Lars Boom (Rabobank) spiced things up behind when they attacked, but Boasson Hagen’s team were able to reel them in. They also controlled a move by Joost Van Leijen (Vacansoleil) and Greg Van Avermaet (BMC Racing Team).
With eleven kilometres to go Greipel punctured. This reduced the urgency of the chase and helped give the breakaway riders the extra help they needed to stay clear. They still had 13 seconds going into the last kilometre, a gap that was more than enough to fight it out for the win between them, and Bono proved quickest in the dash to the line.
Behind, Vaitkus and Roelandts were best of the rest, with Boasson Hagen and Gilbert controlling each other and holding the same overnight gap heading towards tomorrow’s showdown.
Boasson Hagen won the race two years ago and while he knows a battle is in store, hopes to do so again. He’s got a twelve second advantage over his big rival. “Gilbert is going to try something tomorrow,” he said. “We will try to control it and will hopefully still have the GC lead after tomorrow.
“I am always ready, we just have to do our best.”