Summary: Massive crash with 4kms to go. Nearly half the field gets wiped. But, there is no time to assess the damage, as the sprinters are getting ready for the final dash. The leader's jersey is on the line.


Three trains at the front, this should be a good one.


Brit Andrew Fenn takes the lead up the middle, but Team Sky has something going up the barrier with Owain Doull leading out Eduard-Michael Grosu... and here comes Marcus Diamond trying to chase them down. 1.4kms to go.


Fenn keeps pushing as the Team Sky lead-out falls apart, and Diamond starts to lose some steam as well. But, the computer is saying this front group of 12 riders has a 20 seconds gap with 600 meters left to the line.


Fenn cracks hard. Wow. Out of nowhere, Italian Luca Pacioni steals the opening stage in Liverpool. Fenn slipped all the way back to 9th in the final meters.

Result: 10th - A lot of good sprinters in the field. I held my own and avoided that nasty crash with 4kms to go. A good start to the tour, but too bad the small gap to the first 12 cyclists didn't stand.

Those that went down in the crash lost at least 1'47" with 67 cyclists making it home in the lead peloton.

Summary: A interesting placed climb at the end of the route offers the hope of a late attack succeeding. Marcus Diamond gives it his best shot.


Team Sky's Gorka Izagirre, the new Spanish RR Champion, is having none of that. He quickly puts Diamond in his place and takes up the front to get Grosu Eduard-Michael a shot in a sprint finish.


Molano Juan Sebastian, however, has the most kick left in a rather colorful finish.

Result: 9th - I was feeling really good today. The attack was worth it, I don't have the top end speed to match the sprinters.

Summary: Deja vu, the stage plays out just like it did last year. Breakaway caught and mad sprint up to the line.

Result: 14th - Got boxed in a little bit and ended up finishing in the same spot I did last year on this stage, weird. This time, however, I end up losing 45 seconds to the winning group of eight cyclists instead of 25 seconds. I was hoping for better.

Summary: CRASH! 9kms to go and 14 cyclists have rode away from the field. What had been a boring day turns into a critical one.


The 14 cyclists reach the bend to start the final climb with 2.8kms left. They have a gap of over 44 seconds to the next cyclist. The peloton is over 2 minutes back with the yellow jersey nowhere to be found.

Aqua Blue Sport is leading this front group and has six of their seven cyclists here in support of Adam Blythe. Other big names in this group: Stage 1 winner and green jersey holder Luca Pacioni, Geraint Thomas, Marcus Diamond, Matej Mohoric and Davide Ballerini.


Coming to the submit of the climb, Thomas gets caught napping. The Aqua Blue Sport train of Shane Archbold and Andrew Fenn has pulled Blythe, Pacioni and Diamond a little bit clear with 1.6kms to go. Can the small gap be closed?


Under the banner and Archbold peels off. Thomas has already started sprinting and wasted a lot of energy just to catch up. It looks like this one will be decided between Blythe, Pacioni and Diamond.


The speed and positioning of Blythe can't be matched. Pacioni second and Fenn third.

Result: 4th - Didn't have the kick at the end, but a great day nonetheless. I got on the right side of the crash and moved up to seventh in GC, +49 behind new yellow jersey holder Geraint Thomas.

A very strong showing from the team I'll be riding for next season in Aqua Blue Sport. That's always a good sign. Although, it's unclear if Blythe will be returning to the team next season.

Summary: Group of around 40 cyclists survive the small hill at the end to compete in the downhill finish. Juan Sebastian Molano nets his second win of the tour. No major time gaps given at the end of the day, so no major changes in GC.

Result: 6th - I was in the mix, that's about the best I could ask for.

Summary: The clouds were dark. The rain was heavy. The hills hurt.

Eduard-Michael Grosu didn't care and beat Vyacheslav Kuznetsov in a photo finish. A tired and battered peloton raced across the line behind them.

Result: 11th - Kept my head down, battled through the thunderstorm and finished in the lead group. A successful day. You can't try to win every stage. Got to save some energy for the Stage 8 ITT.

Summary: The final road race stage before taking on the clock. The Cat. 1 climb at the end offers an ideal springboard to win the tour if timed correctly.

That is exactly what Marcus Diamond has tried, taking with him teammate Mark McNally. The morning breakaway of six is still over two minutes up the road with 10kms remaining.


But, Diamond went too early and the peloton catches. Here goes Matej Mohoric! He needs four seconds to steal yellow away from Geraint Thomas.


Mohoric can see the breakaway and the finish line, but here comes Diamond — shot out of a cannon — to close down the gap. Where did this come from!?! Thomas should give Diamond a diamond if the fellow Brit can save his yellow jersey.


Unknown American Colin Joyce takes the stage win from the breakaway, but the bigger story is Diamond reeling back Mohoric to the favourites group in the closing meters. No time gaps for the first 91 cyclists because of it.

Result: 9th - Went on the attack early and didn't work, as I kind of expected but I had to try. Saved up enough energy for a final burst and was able to bring back Mohoric. You are welcome Geraint... Not like he wasn't going to win the tour in the ITT tomorrow anyways.

Summary: Pedal fast and hard. 8.8kms to decide the tour. The London Eye watches over the cyclists as they go flying down the streets.


Marcus Diamond with an exceptional time, provisional 5th 30 seconds behind leader Gorka Izagirre. Andrew Fenn, Adam Blythe can't match. Luca Pacioni stops the clock at 55 seconds back...

Let me do that math on that...

Diamond will take that spot as well by a second. He has moved inside the Top 5 of GC with Thomas Pidcock sitting fourth in GC right now, second on the stage provisionally 10 seconds slower than Izagirre.

Soren Kragh Anderson slots into fifth provisionally and holds third in GC. But a slow time (+49 seconds) for Matej Mohoric will move Anderson to second overall.


Geraint Thomas... Huh... +30 seconds on the stage. What a terrible day for him. Yet, it won't matter. Anderson needed to make up 25 seconds and only banked eight. Thomas holds on to win on home soil.

Teammate Izagirre takes the stage win and will wonder what could have been if he didn't get caught up in that crash on Stage 4.

Result: 8th, 5th overall - I don't know where that time trial came from, but I'll take it. What a honor to take a Top 5 here in my backyard. Look out world, this 19-year-old is going places.

Summary: Up, down, up, down, up, down, etc.

Staying at the front of the peloton was vital to avoid splits in the rear. We pick up the action with 13kms to go, as a 67-cyclist peloton hits the major climb one last time. All the favourites are here. Who makes the first move?

Joao Almeida tried and Jose Israel Jornet stuck on his wheel. Marcus Diamond watched and followed in the distance. We reach the top and nobody could get clear.


Here goes Stephan Rabitsch with 7.6kms remaining on a false incline.


The boys from Burgo-BH weren't going to let that go clear. Jornet waves his arm at Rabitsch to gesture nice try. 3.8kms left.


While Jornet was chating with Rabitsch, Diamond takes off in the shadows. He waited and waited for this opportunity. The remaining peloton needs to react. This is dangerous!


Diamond can see the banner through the trees. He was in this exact position a year ago with the sprinters on his wheel. Could have won. Now, he has a pretty decent gap. What a redemption story this would be. Or, possibly more heartbreak.


Diamond around the final corner. The finish line! He can't look back...


The sun shining down, Marcus Diamond lifts his arms to the sky.

Extreme poise and patience from the 19-year-old to wait for the perfect time to attack, a lesson learned from last year no doubt. His second career win. This budding star is one to watch in the future.

Result: 1st - HELL YEAH!!!!!! LET'S GO!!!!!!!!!

Summary: The cross winds not as powerful today and we have a fairly large peloton going into the final cobble section with 10kms to go.


Steady tempo across the cobbles and then an attack by Ludwig De Winter. Winter is coming!


Three cyclists form the chase group behind De Winter. Piet Allegaert is leading the charge with red-hot Marcus Diamond and Jarno Mobach on his wheel. A peloton of 19 cyclists is close behind and could bring back these three.


The limited peloton does. Diamond decides he has to go now with De Winter opening a 25-second gap with about 5kms to go.


That works! Diamond has broke free. The chase is on to get De Winter. Diamond is trying to win back-to-back one-day races after his triumph at the Int. Raiffeisen Grand Prix a week ago.


What a finish this is turning out to be. De Winter trying to hold on with Diamond coming on strong and now Allegaert has attacked from the peloton and is chasing down Diamond. Who still has the willpower for a strong final kilometer?


De Winter hangs on. But what a pursuit by Diamond. If he had 300-400 more meters, I think he would have got him. Allegaert can't hold off the sprinters and takes 6th.

Result: 2nd - That was excited. Another win would have been nice, but I don't want to get too greedy. Nothing wrong with a runner-up finish here. Props to De Winter, heck of a race by him.

- Each member gets 3.0 points to spread however they like over the 13 attributes listed above. One post per member.
- Stats work on a decimal system starting at 55.0.
- Stats are bumped up in PCM when they hit that number, ex. 55.9 = 55 in-game, and 61.4 = 61 stat in-game.
- The decimal numbers will remain hidden.
- There is a threshold for each stat when more points are needed to increase that stat. It's start off on a 1-to-1 scale where 1 point equals 1 stat upgrade. However, the scales get exponentially further and further apart the closer that stat gets to the maximum of 85. The increasing scale will also remain a mystery.
- Comment below to provide stat upgrades

- Each member gets 5.0 points to spread however they like over the 36 attributes listed above. One post per member.
- Stats work on a decimal system starting at 1.0.
- Stats are bumped up in FM when they hit that number, ex. 2.9 = 2 in-game, and 13.4 = 13 stat in-game.
- The decimal numbers will remain hidden.
- There is a threshold for each stat when more points are needed to increase that stat. It's start off on a 1-to-1 scale where 1 point equals 1 stat upgrade. However, the scales get exponentially further and further apart the closer that stat gets to the maximum of 20. The increasing scale will also remain a mystery and is different from the cycling progression scale.
-Comment below to provide stat upgrades.

Summary: After the peloton gets ripped apart across each circuit, four attackers get away late for a highly contested sprint finish. Daniel Felipe Martinez edges out last year's winner Giulio Ciccone, Warren Barguil and Amaro Manuel Antunes.


Result: 26th - Yo-yoing off the back of the peloton, I finally dropped with 35kms to go. I found myself in a group that picked up all the pieces up the road as cyclists went into the red and had no energy left to give. Made up around 15 spots that way. Regardless, still a spot worse than I finished last year (25th).

- Each member gets 5.0 points to spread however they like over the 36 attributes listed above. One post per member.
- Stats work on a decimal system starting at 1.0.
- Stats are bumped up in FM when they hit that number, ex. 2.9 = 2 in-game, and 13.4 = 13 stat in-game.
- The decimal numbers will remain hidden.
- There is a threshold for each stat when more points are needed to increase that stat. It's start off on a 1-to-1 scale where 1 point equals 1 stat upgrade. However, the scales get exponentially further and further apart the closer that stat gets to the maximum of 20. The increasing scale will also remain a mystery and is different from the cycling progression scale.
-Comment below to provide stat upgrades.

- Each member gets 3.0 points to spread however they like over the 13 attributes listed above. One post per member.
- Stats work on a decimal system starting at 55.0.
- Stats are bumped up in PCM when they hit that number, ex. 55.9 = 55 in-game, and 61.4 = 61 stat in-game.
- The decimal numbers will remain hidden.
- There is a threshold for each stat when more points are needed to increase that stat. It's start off on a 1-to-1 scale where 1 point equals 1 stat upgrade. However, the scales get exponentially further and further apart the closer that stat gets to the maximum of 85. The increasing scale will also remain a mystery.
- Comment below to provide stat upgrades