A thank you to GCN TV for the screen pictures I took
A stage that was for the climbers and probably will shape the overall GC for the remainder of the race. Today stage was a very rolling stage with venomous climbs situated near the finish line that was crossed a few times due to laps in the final. An early escape of 3 riders lasted till about 12 km to go when the big guns start decimating the peloton and taking control of the race. Before that, the Deceuninck-Quickstep lads had been instrumental in getting the 3 riders back, Sam Bennett seen upfront for a long time, but we all know that Sam is not a climber and his job was to get the GC players of the team in a good position for the final which he did well. With about 1,5 km to go, Richie Porte attacked and very quickly distanced himself from a small group of riders and kept them at bay to finish in his usual style…5 seconds quicker than Australian Rob Power and Simon Yates, the 2 other favourites of the day Rohan Dennis and Daryl Impey in the same time in 4th and 6th. Richie is taking the lead due to the 10 seconds bonus time at the finish. Tomorrow a so-called sprinters stage, but there is some climbing to do at the early miles of the 150km stage…If Sam gets safely over that, we could see him chasing a second win of the week.
