A very short and very flat stage should spell bunch sprint.
In spite of this looking like a certain bunch sprint plenty of riders want a spot in the break. Frohlinger, Anza, Busche and P. Van der Ploeg forms the first stable group.
40 km to go. The quartet has 30 seconds to Vink, A further 26 seconds to Gerrans and Tanovitchii and a total of 2’30 to the peloton.
30 km to go. All the breakers have united with 1’44 to the peloton.
Plenty of teams are working to catch them.
Pranata decides to attack and spends some time between the peloton and the break. After all this is his only chance to show the jersey…
20 km and 56 seconds. Pranata is back in the pack.
15 km and 55 seconds.
10 km and 51 seconds.
Have Meiji – Cannondale and Jaguar – Eritel underestimated the break?
Frohlinger puts in a massive pull in front shelling the front group to five riders, who enters the final 7 km with 48 seconds to the peloton.
5 km and the gap is still at 28 seconds from the pack to the front.
And here comes the Meiji – Cannondale train with 3,7 km to go.
The break is caught with 2,7 km to the line.
With 2 km to go the riders cross the startline again. Luckily no one confuses it with the finish line.
The situation is:
Modolo
Lo Cicero
Davis
Rizza
Granjal Cabrera
Tewelde
Hutarovich
Dowsett
Anza
Bennett
P. Van der Ploeg
Haidar Anuawar
Tanovitchii
Matthews
Vasylyuk
Mora
Lo Cicero leaves Modolos wheel with 1,5 km to go followed by Davis.
They are the only two riders anywhere near the stage win today!
Granjal Cabrera looks just as comfortablein 3rd place with 500 m left.
Davis takes it on the line!
The others cross the line in a messy sprint with Vasylyuk fastest of the rest.
