Paris-Nice: Groenewegen wins stage 2

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Dylan Groenewegen (LottoNL-Jumbo) continued his strong start to the 2018 season as he landed stage 2 of Paris-Nice in a bunch finish in Vierzon. The Dutchman picked his way through a chaotic finale and then delivered a powerful finishing effort to claim the win ahead of Elia Viviani (Quick-Step Floors), while André Greipel (Lotto Soudal) took third.

Groenewegen showed considerable patience as Sam Bennett (Bora-Hansgrohe) went from distance on the slightly rising finishing straight, and then produced a ferocious acceleration to overhaul the Irishman. Viviani and Greipel both closed in the final 50 metres, but they simply ran out of road against Groenewegen.

"I'm feeling very good, but the team is also very strong," said Groenewegen. "They did a very good job in the final. There was a small climb in the end but I survived and I was able to sprint for the win."

Though well marshalled by his Groupama-FDJ team and Ramon Sinkeldam in particular, yellow jersey Arnaud Démare could only manage 5th on the stage behind Phil Bauhaus (Sunweb). The Frenchman did, however, extend his overall lead to 7 seconds over Gorka Izagirre (Bahrain-Merida) after picking up three bonus seconds at the first intermediate sprint.

The stage was a rather slow-burning affair as a headwind proved an impediment to early attackers and ensured the race reached Vierzon some way behind the slowest predicted schedule, though the finale was not without incident.

Of particular note was the form of Julian Alaphilippe (Quick-Step Floors), who underscored his GC ambitions by sneaking off the front to pick up a bonus second at the second intermediate sprint with 15km remaining, having already collected two bonus seconds earlier in the stage.

The sprinters' teams stalked the day's escapees Manuele Boaro (Bahrain-Merida) and Tiago Machado (Katusha-Alpecin) through the closing stages, with Lotto Soudal and LottoNL-Jumbo prominent, and the break was eventually snuffed out with 4km to go.

No one team had been able to control affairs on the run-in, with a pair of roundabouts sowing some confusion, though Viviani’s Quick-Step team looked to have gained the upper hand when they surged to the front inside the opening two kilometres. They continued to lead under the flammge rouge, but a mix-up on the final corner effectively derailed their train. Alaphilippe found himself marooned in a group of three off the front – too far from home to sprint for the win, and too far clear of Viviani to be of any help in the finishing straight.

A rather muddled bunch sprint ensued, with many sprinters forced to improvise. Démare perhaps had the strongest supporting cast around him, but he lacked the sparkle that had carried him to victory on stage 1. Viviani continued his remarkably consistent start to the season, though he will surely rue the way his Quick-Step team surrendered the box seat in the final kilometre.

Groenewegen, meanwhile, made no mistake in the final kilometre. His LottoNL-Jumbo team – Lars Boom in particular – had been to the fore in chasing down the break, and his put the finishing touches to their work with a well-timed sprint.

"The stage was very easy but the final was very hard. But we were again in good position in the last corner, I sprinted and won," Groenewegen said with considerable understatement.

A split in the finishing straight briefly threatened to alter the complexion of the general classification, but the commissaires quickly revised the time, meaning that none of the overall contenders conceded ground. Démare holds yellow, seven seconds ahead of Gorka Izagirre and eight up on Christophe Laporte (Cofidis), while Alaphilippe’s bonus seconds have bumped him up to 4th overall, 10 seconds down.

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How it unfolded

A block headwind as the peloton rolled away from the start in Orsonville meant that there was a most sedate opening to proceedings on Monday. After a brace of tentative early attacks came to nothing, the bunch remained huddled in phalanx formation for the opening two hours or so, ambling along at a speed just north of 32kph.

The gentle early pace was of little benefit to Rui Costa (UAE-Team Emirates), who climbed off after 20 kilometres due to the effects of a knee injury sustained in his crash on stage 1. Tejay van Garderen (BMC Racing Team), another faller on the fraught opening day, was a non-starter.

As the peloton pedalled along dry roads and in gently rising temperatures – the worst of the recent frigid weather in Europe has mercifully passed – the lone frisson came at the intermediate sprint in Patay after 64 kilometres, where overall leader Démare claimed three bonus seconds, but Alaphilippe signalled his GC ambitions by taking second place and two seconds for himself.

With 90 kilometres remaining, the race finally shook itself blearily into action, as  Boaro, Machado, Olivier Naesen (AG2R La Mondiale), Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal), Anthony Delaplace (Fortuneo-Samsic) and Boom formed the day's first break.

Powered by De Gendt, the sextet built up a buffer 40 seconds or so, but with Katusha-Alpecin and Cofidis driving the pace in the peloton, a tight rein was kept on their advantage. Within 15 kilometres, the move had effectively been brought to heel, but just as the peloton was breathing down upon them, Boaro and Machado kicked once again, and a lull in proceedings behind allowed this duo to establish a stable lead at the front of the race.

Working smoothly together, Boaro and Machado stretched the gap out to a maximum of three minutes with 40 kilometres remaining, before Groupama-FDJ, Lotto Soudal and LottoNL-Jumbo began to make inroads into their advantage. A bunch sprint was inevitable, and Groenewegen seized the opportunity when it presented itself.

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