The final climb up KItzbuhler horn will dominate todays action and likely the destiny of the riders GC ambitions here in Austria. The feelings in commentary box is that Jose Serpa (Pirelli) and the two Spaniards David Abal (Santander) and Fran Perez Sanchez (UBS) may go best.
Before that climb though the peleton will be seriously tested it is very windy out on the approach course as we head down into the valleys that bring us to the alps. Three riders make todays breakaway and includes two highly talented young riders.
Guldhammer (Telenor), Teklehaiment (Unicredit) and de Romijn (Youtube)
Young Dane Rasmus Guldhammer has the potential to become a big stage racing talent, although some say he could be even better suited as a punchaer. Whereas Teklehaiment makes the headlines as a young African rider from Eritea, certainly not an area world renowned for its cycling there is a feeling that this like east Asia could be a growth area for cycling. Young Daniel on loan from the Phillips TDC squad could well also be a decent rider for hilly classics. The other rider is also developing in the lowly Youtube squad who have raft of riders under this description which probably explains their lowly team ranking.
Onto the racing and it is Rasmus Guldhammer who takes both the early sprints, firstly ahead of Teklihaiment and de Romijn and secondly ahead of de Romijn and Teklehaiment.
Rasmus hammers em in the sprints
It is blowing a gale out there and our three man breakaway are struggling to hold it together, Guldhammer and Teklehaiment are not seeing a lot of work coming from teh comparitevely weak de Romijn. These three have 8.20 with 100km to go as the peleton is completely battered by the 60 mph + wind in the valleys.
Splits appearing and closing all over the place
At first the splits are closing quickly, but as the wind continues to batter the peleton smaller groups are getting isolated and with less riders in them that is the danger. Indeed a fairly significant (in terms of quality of riders) group of seven riders is detached by over 90 seconds from the peleton.
Seven rider seriously distanced
Pirelli and Santander have lost two key helpers apiece here, Pirelli's riders are Ndbri and Tiralongo and Santanders riders are Valls and Castrovieja. Also in this group is Telenors Benjamin Noval, that is surprising given how well he rode in the recent Ringerinke GP. Also distanced for Telenor is Chritian Pfannberger and he joins this left behind group of disappointed riders, likely to recieve an earbashing from team managers tonight!
With 50km to go Guldhammer and Teklehaiment finally distance the passnger de Romijn, the gap to the peleton is 5.20 and now the gap to the Ndbri/Pfannberger group to the peleton is two minutes.
When I say peleton, I mean reduced peleton as more big names start to fall by the wayside.
A group contain Krasnoperov is now dropped, also here is Unicredit leader Valjavec.
This is a more weighty group in terms of numbers and they are clinging on gamely, helped by the fact that riders from their teams ahead are not really pushing on. But up front Santander and UBS decide to ramp up the pressure, sensing an oppurtunity before we reach the climbing.
Santander and UBS pull team leaders clear
Abal and Perez Sanchez have been pulled clear here and as we approach the first 3rd category bump of the day (which may provide a bit of shelter), they have a definite lead of the main group.
e1Guldhammer, Teklehaiment e2 de romijn at 1 minute e3 Abal and Perez Sanchez group at 3.25 e438 rider Peleton at 4.28 e5 Krasnoperov / Valjavec group at 5.19 e6 Pfannberger/Ndbri/Noval group at 7.25
As we come onto the climb Guldhammer begins to move away from Teklehaiment.
Dane powers away from African
Meanwhile Pirelli with their remianing domestiques haul Jose Serpa impressively across to the Perez Sanchez/Abal group.
Serpa bridges to dangerman group
Excellent work from the Pirelli team, who will feel that without the presences of Ikea's Taaramae and Alarcon and Bacardi's Ricardo Ricco that Jose Serpa should really be dominating here in Austria. Meanwhile Telenors on loan Dane crests the first climb.
Four points for Rasmus
Following the climb both Serpa and Perez Sanchez who unlike Abal have shielded themselves from the wind begin to move clear. Also making a late bridging move is Theo Eltink of Falcon, he had an excellent Ringerike GP podium.
Three men move clear and Abal is surprisingly not one of them
In fact, Abal is not the Santander rider that you can see in the picture that is Hernandez, the Spanish climber Abal is back in the peleton. The peleton incidentely has reformed with Krasnoperov and Valjavec back in the fold.
Twenty clicks to go then and here are the groups:
e1 Guldhammer e2 Teklehaiment at 38 seconds e3Serpa, Eltink, Perez Sanchez at 1.42 e4 Hernandez, Basso at 2.05 e5Dupont, Ortega at 2.19 e6 Peleton at 2.38 e7 Pfannberger/Ndbri at 6 minutes
As the climb of the Kitzbuhler Horn starts a couple of riders attack from the peleton Petrov, Txurruka and Valjavec. The latter has recovered from being behind in the split, but the most impressive of the three attackers is Russian veteren Petrov who joins our leaders. In fact he replaces Eltink who drops back to the other two attackers and is beginning to rock and roll a bit.
Petrov bridges to Perez Sanchez and Serpa as Eltink drops back
The three leaders catch and quickly dispatch young Guldhammer with 13.5km to go of climbing.
Guldhammers day is over
Still a long way up this nasty climb and it only gets steeper from here, selections have already been made and it is clear that today is going to be highly decisive. Theo Eltink clearly was overconfident as he really begins to suffer on this climb...
Eltink is dropped by the second group on the road
Nine kilometers to go this is the situation:
e1Petrov, Perez Sanchez, Serpa e2Txrurruka, Valjavec at 38 seconds e3 Eltink at 55 seconds e4 15 rider peleton: Krasnoperov + Van den Broeck + Terciado + Riberio (Benfica), Camino, Sabido + Beraud (Bimbo Nutella) + Rohregger (Telenor), Abal + Hernandez (Santander), Grau (Unicredit), Riblon (UBS), Basso (Pirelli), Shpilevski + Trusov (Tinkoff) at 1.30 e5 Group Napilitano at 2.44 e6 Pfannberger/Ndbri at 4.43
Benfica are using their domestiques to try and close this down, Van den Broeck with that long TT to come and tomorrows stage which probably suits him as well is a real threat. Up front perhaps in response to this Perez Sanchez, tired of waiting for Serpa to make his move puts in a good acceleration.
UBS rider gets a gap on other two
At a similar point on the climb with 7.5km to go four riders from the peleton decide to put in a dig.
VdB, Camino, Abal and Rohregger make their move
It's a late move but should get these riders over the fading leaders, but Perez Sanchez is not fading and still has a lot of energy.
e1Perez Sanchez e2Petrov and Serpa at 29 seconds e3Txurruka at 1.24 e4 VdB, Abal, Camino, Rohregger, Valjavec at 1.36 e5 Eltink at 2.06 e6 Krasnoperov group at 2.35
This is looking good for Perez Sanchez with 5km to go. Fran is maintaining his form
He may have cost a lot of money at the beginning of the season but he is really earning his keep here, the Spaniard is also one of the better TTers on the startlist, so this could well be a race winning move. However Jose Serpa is gritting his teeth and beginning to close the gap and moves away from Petrov.
Serpa trying to save the race here
Behind this as Txurruka is caught from the late attackers it is Van den Broeck and Camino who look the strongest. You feel if they can finish fast enough they could have a good day tomorrow, both are good TTers as well.
Two riders moving clear in 4th and 5th on the road
But with just 1200m left Perez Sanchez finds Serpa on his wheel, who has anything left for the sprint?
Made it onto the wheel
Fortunes are changing behind as some riders seem to be cracking, Camino loses Van den Broecks wheel and drops back towards the others behind.
Camino hits the wall
They are in the final straight up front and Perez Sanchez is desperately trying to hold off Serpa who seems to be gaining as he has done the last 2.5km with every pedal stroke.
Red and black vs Blue and Black
But the road runs out and Perez Sanchez takes a season defining win!
Excellent win for Perez Sanchez
Serpa is second... and Petrov holds on well to finish not so far back in 3rd.
Good day for the Russian
Out of nowhere Krasnoperov puts in a late spurt to join his team leader as Benfica take 4th and 5th, they will be dangerous tomorrow. Still they finish some 1.45 down on Perez Sanchez a Benfica GC win seems unlikely now.
Benfica off the podium on a mountain stage for once, still an okay day for them
Next group is Camino, Valjavec, Riblon, Terciado, Rohregger, Txurruka and Eltink... at 2.25
Camino leads them over in 6th
It is a terrible last 3 kilometers for David Abal, who cracks badly to finish at 3.25, hopes of a podium surely gone.
