Cavendish wins final stage of Abu Dhabi Tour

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Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data) won the final stage of the Abu Dhabi Tour, his second of the race, beating Giacomo Nizzolo (Trek-Segafredo) in a straight sprint for the line. Elia Viviani (Team Sky) took a distant third place while Tanel Kangert (Astana) finished safely in the bunch to claim the overall victory.

Dimension Data had done much of the work throughout the stage in conjunction with race leaders Astana. They were present at the front still when the race headed into the final kilometres. The pace on the Yas Marina Formula one circuit was so high that several splits occurred down the bunch, not least at the front when Mark Renshaw (Dimension Data) pulled out a significant gap on the bunch as they rounded the final corner.

The Australian glanced over his shoulder to see that his team leader was no longer with him but, unlike in Qatar a week ago, there was plenty of space for Cavendish to have a clean run to the line. Nizzolo was hot on his heels and was closing the gap but the Italian didn't have the legs to overtake the Manxman.

"I'm so happy to be the winner of the final stage of the Abu Dhabi Tour on the YAS Marina Circuit. There was an incredible atmosphere," Cavendish said. "I missed the race last year because I was injured and I was really jealous of the boys racing, especially on this last day. It was very fast. My teammates controlled the group really well the whole day. I got an incredible lead out. Mark Renshaw was very calm going into the finale. I just had to jump."

Kangert enjoyed an easy enough day in the peloton and maintained his 21-second lead over Nicolas Roche in the overall classification.

"I must say it was more difficult that it might look like because the corners were really tight. I was surprised they were so tight for car racing. It made the race special with the lights and the dark," Kangert said.

"In the end I was pretty tired just keeping the wheels. I can't say there wasn't any pressure because there was, and I felt it. I was excited to race in the leader's jersey. It was my first time leading a professional race. I'm happy everything went well and I might be back soon to defend the title in February."

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