After storming into the leader's red jersey on stage 1 of the Vuelta a España in Novara, many suspected that Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) would have his way again as the Spanish Grand Tour rolled into the French town of Voiron yesterday.
It looked like it would be the case heading into the final few hundred metres of stage 4, as Philipsen's final leadout man, Edward Planckaert, towed his compatriot and the rest of the bunch into view of the line.
However, Ben Turner, a late replacement at the race for Ineos Grenadiers after Lucas Hamilton fell ill last week, wasn't keen to let the Grand Tour's fastest sprinter have it all his own way.
Positioned fourth in the line behind the Alpecin duo and Ethan Vernon (Israel-Premier Tech), Turner launched his sprint inside the final 100m and benefited from Philipsen being trapped between the barrier, his teammate, and Vernon. By the time the Belgian had clean air, it was too late, and he had to settle for second as Turner claimed his first Grand Tour stage win.
Analysing his performance after the stage, Philipsen didn't blame his teammate, but cited a less-than-straightforward finale and his own condition when speaking to Sporza.
"I wanted to pass on the left, but Edward [Planckaert] couldn't hear me because of the spectators, and it was still quite far," he said.
"I lost a bit of speed and momentum. But I also didn't have the best legs."
He went on to reiterate his disappointment with his own power output, frankly adding: "The finish wasn't completely straight either, and that made it a bit more difficult, but my feeling is just not great at all."
"It's a shame I couldn't finish the job, but I didn't feel good enough. My legs did the talking."
With La Vuelta now back on Spanish soil for today's stage 5 team time trial, Philipsen will have to wait until the weekend for his next shot at a stage with two high mountain stages in the Pyrenees to come before the flat finish into Zaragoza.
In the points classification battle, Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) narrowly leads the way on 78 points, just two ahead of Vernon, with Philipsen in third, a point further back on 75.
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