No big surprises in the second stage of the Tour of the Basque Country. Remco Evenepoel and the other classification men only played a supporting role in the sprint of a thinned peloton, which was won by Paul Lapeira. The Belgian champion does move up one place in the rankings.
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Paul Lapeira (23), remember that name. French third-year professional of Decathlon-AG2R. Won the Tour of Lombardy with the U23. In the Milan-Sanremo weekend he ‘doubled’ in the Classic Loire Atlantique and the Chôlet-Agglo Tour. And now he also has his first ever WorldTour victory. In the second stage of the Tour of the Basque Country he sprinted in Cambo-les-Bains, on… yes, French soil, faster than Samuele Battistella and – cleverly – Louis Vervaeke.
“I’m not really a sprinter. Actually, I mainly wanted to keep Remco and Landa safe until the final kilometer. But suddenly there I was, well positioned. And I followed the wheel in front of me. (laughs) So it was a bit ‘like a thief’. I didn’t have the legs and much-needed acceleration to compete for the stage victory, it was more of a podium sprint. After illness in Mallorca, my condition wasn’t great in the Algarve, but I worked really hard and since Paris-Nice I feel like I’m getting better every training session, every race. It will also be necessary to try to help Remco achieve the overall victory in the remaining stages of this Tour of the Basque Country.”
Main mission accomplished for Vervaeke and co.: Landa and Evenepoel remained ‘safe and well’. The Belgian champion even took another second after Del Toro and Ayuso in the second bonus sprint in Espelette, 8.7 kilometers from the finish. As a result, he came within ten seconds of Primoz Roglic in the rankings (in the same time as Skjelmose Jensen).
“We just had to be awake and ready for that sprint, because that was the competition too,” said Soudal Quick-Step team leader Klaas Lodewyck. “You saw it coming from afar, they kept accelerating and when push came to shove, every classification rider was there. In the end it was only a small effort that did not require much effort. The full booty – three seconds – would have been nice. But that second is still a second. It may not make the bill in the end. But it was there, then you have to pick it up.” Mikel Landa also thought so. “I don’t think the differences between the tenors will be that great in the coming days. So we have to fight for every second in those bonus sprints. I see it remaining very exciting until the last day.” (JDK)
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LOOK. Louis Vervaeke: “There really wasn’t anything more to it”
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17:24
Paul Lapeira (Decathlon-AG2R) wins the second stage
Paul Lapeira of Decathlon-AG2R wins the second stage. He makes it in a sprint with a small group ahead of Samuele Battistella (Astana) and Louis Vervaeke (Soudal Quick-Step)
17:12
ANOTHER 9 KM: Intermediate sprint in Espelette
Isaac Del Toro wins the intermediate sprint in Espelette. He beats Juan Ayuso and Remco Evenepoel. Now the sprinters can prepare for the bunch sprint.
5:05 PM
ANOTHER 13 KM: Refugees caught
The four escapees were caught. The peloton is preparing for the intermediate sprint and the mass sprint.
5:05 PM
ANOTHER 14 KM: Sprinters in the peloton
With the peloton heading for a bunch sprint, the favorites for the win are: Alex Aranburu (Movistar), Stefano Oldani (Cofidis), Nikias Arndt (Bahrain), Ethan Hayter (INEOS Grenadiers) and Orluis Aular (Caja Rural).
17:01
ANOTHER 16 KM: The peloton prepares for a bunch sprint
The escapees’ lead is starting to shrink noticeably. The peloton comes closer and prepares for the bunch sprint.
16:56
ANOTHER 20 KM: The leading group still not caught
With 20 km still on the clock, the leading group has still not been caught. The quartet’s lead is still 25″.
16:44
ANOTHER 28 KM: Peloton led by UAE, Bora and Quick-Step
The teams of Remco Evenepoel, Juan Ayuso and Primoz Roglic do their work at the front of the peloton. The escapees’ lead has dropped below a minute. The peloton is heading for a mass sprint.
16:33
ANOTHER 36 KM: Refugees lose ground
The peloton has stepped up its game. The lead of the escapees is now only 1’38”.
16:14
ANOTHER 50 KM: Lead increases again
The leading group gains time again. After the lead was briefly 2’30”, they expanded to 3’02”.
16:08
ANOTHER 53 KM: Soudal Quick-Step at the front posts
The Wolfpack also makes itself known at the head of the pack. They do the work for their leader Evenepoel.
16:01
ANOTHER 59 KM: Leading group loses ground
The leading group now only has a lead of 2’34”. The maximum lead today was just under 4 minutes.
15:28
ANOTHER 82 KM: Cobo taken back by the peloton
After having to let go in the leading group, Cobo is now back in the peloton. The lead of the four escapees is still 3’30”.
15:16
STILL 90 KM: Four escapees with 3’40”
Ivan Cobo must let the escapees drive. The Spaniard from Equipo Kern Pharma can no longer follow. This leaves four of the escapees.
15:02
ANOTHER 109 KM: Intermediate sprint in Kanbo
The Frenchman Alexis Vuillermoz beats the Azparren brothers in the sprint. Vuillermoz takes 10 points and 3 bonus seconds. Xabier Azparren comes 2nd in the intermediate sprint and takes 6 points and 2 seconds, Enekoitz Azparren comes 3rd and takes 4 points and 1 second.
14:48
ANOTHER 110 KM: Crash in the peloton
The Spaniards Jonathan Lastra and Ion Izagirre (both Cofidis) fail. Our compatriot Tom Paquot (Intermarché-Wanty) was also involved in the fall.
14:29
ANOTHER 124 KM: Brussenskiy abandonment
The Kazakh Gleb Brussenskiy gives up early. Yesterday, the Asian champion finished 1’44” behind Roglic in the time trial.
14:27
ANOTHER 130 KM: Two intermediate sprints today
The riders are presented with two intermediate sprints today. The first intermediate sprint is quite early in the race. After 49 km to be precise. Then the riders pass through Kanbo for the first time. There is another intermediate sprint 10 km from the finish, this time in Espelette (Ezpeleta in Basque).
14:09
ANOTHER 139 KM: Brother pair in the leading group
Enekoitz and Xabier Azparren are currently at the front. The two brothers ride for their own people in the Basque Country. They are both from San Sebastian. Enekoitz currently rides for Euskaltel, while Xabier has been competing for Q36.5 since this year.
14:04
ANOTHER 154 KM: A group of five riders rides away
Evenepoel predicted a long battle for a spot in the early flight, but that does not seem to be the case. Five riders get away and quickly build up a nice lead. Alexis Vuillermoz, Enekoitz Azparren, Ivan Cobo, Jetse Bol and Xabier Azparren are almost four minutes ahead of the peloton. In the peloton, BORA-hansgrohe, Roglic’s team, is doing the leading work.
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Tags: Evenepoel moves ranking Lapeira wins sprint thinned peloton ahead Vervaeke among Sport
