Pan flat circuit race in Thailand. Lo Cicero, Guerao, Ahlstrand and Avelino the top4 favourites but it should be a wide open race as to many equally strong sprinters are in the mix and a lot depends on the strength of their leadout riders as well.
Plus the breakaway riders obviously also want to get the stage and at times it indeed happens that sprinter teams miss out on a flat classic. Iturria Clesen Jang
surely hope so and none of those three teams have a 1st tier sprinter here.
This is also missed opportunity for the two home riders of Shimano to get into the group, in especially as their team neither has a very good sprinter here.
Coldeportes (Guerao), Valio (Lo Cicero), Porto (Avelino) are expected teams to organize the chase.
They are supported by Visit Ukraine for French champion Vanderbiest. Spotify for now staying relaxed in the peloton.
The gap reached a max of 6min but then slowly melted towards the 2min mark.
With 30km to go it`s just about 100s and we see the first roleur trying to attack. It`s classic rider Vermote. In Serebriakov they have a solid sprinter but too often he underperformed this season, hence a good move by them.
Though Valio quickly caught him again and as you see in the background also the gap to the group became tiny. Less than 1min now with 23km to go and another attack.
Again it`s Vermote not giving up yet and this time he might have company as Chtioui follows. Reinhardt is UBS` lead sprinter and hence another team, who is trying their luck elsewhere.
Though once more the sprinter teams don`t allow such move and Porto, VisitUkraine and Coldeportes quickly have caught them just like Kwok who tried 5km later.
And on the final lap with 10km to go the obvio9us also happened. No chance for the breakaway. Far too many teams aimed a sprint finish and hence the spectators will get one.
The question was, which sprinters will get a sprint train. Surprisingly only 2 as Coldeportes for Guerao and Valio for Lo Cicero were the only ones. First a bit stronger right now.
Angarita
Nikolaev
Forero
Guerao
Itami
Zabel
Eisel
Polivoda
Bouhanni
Vinther
Lo Cicero
Hutarovich
Vanderbiest
Nizzolo
Avelino
Castañeda
Van Asbroeck
Serebriakov
Ahlstrand
Kruopis
Granjel Cabrera
Haidar Anuawar
Actually Visit Ukraine seems to try to setup a train for Vanderbiest but it`s not a really good attempt here and also several solid sprinters are badly placed in late positions and some such as Kupfernagel, Thorsen, Haussler, Matthews, Richeze, Mepomnyachsniy or Reinhardt aren`t even in the mix.
Veteran Eisel doing a lot better than the whole Coldeportes train. He equals their position and while Vinther and Lo Cicero are still behind him, Angarita is already in the front and Guerao having a small gap to him. Not the most ideal preperation by Coldeportes.
Therefore Visit Ukraine found a way for Vanderbiest to now sit behind Polivoda and Hutarovich but a bit blocked in between the other trains.
That`s early! Guerao is left in the wind with 2km to go as Angarita was done.
At the same time Eisel only leaves the front and Vinther takes over. Actually Polivoda is for Ukraine as those two trains merged a bit.
Great position for Itami, Zabel, Bouhanni or Granjel Cabrera. All sit behind Guerao getting the perfect leadout now.
Not a surprise that Guerao is faster than the Polivoda/Vinther combination. Hence a good move by Lo Cicero to get behind this train while Vanderbiest still is behind Hutarovic on the left side.
800m and Guerao is done! Wow. Big screw up of their winning ambitions here.
Zabel in the lead now being attacked by Bouhanni.
Itami a bit behind side by side with Lo Cicero. Those are the sprinters that got the leadout by Coldeportes.
Granjel Cabrera, Vanderbiest, Serebriakov, Avelino, Nizzolo, Van Asbroeck, Castaneda, Ahlstrand are the sprinters in the rows behind and also Kupfernagel found a way to the front but this might be too late for him.
It seems to be a decision between those four. Zabel and Bouhanni in front. Then Lo Cicero and Itami.
Granjel Cabrera and in especially Avelino might come too late to get the win as it`s just 300m to go.
Also the the other sprinters only fight for a top10 while Guerao can be happy to get this at all!
Close one. Bouhanni or Lo Cicero clearly.
Itami surely 3rd while Zabel faded in the end dropping to 4th with Avelino being 5th.
But who won?
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Riders usually know best and Bouhanni is celebrating and just moments later also the officials claim him the winner. So well done Euskaltel for a surprising win here but the French has done it before beating faster sprinters.
Lo Cicero in 2nd being the best of the top4, which did kind of disappoint today.
Avelino in 5th at least solid, while Ahlstrand 11. and Guerao 14. didn`t even make a top10.
Instead Granjel Cabrera in 6th ahead of Van Asbroeck, Vanderbiest, Nizzolo and Castaneda in the top10.
