Last season Neilson Powless showed his promise as a general classification contender when he came within a second of taking the yellow jersey at the Tour de France. He confirmed that potential on Sunday by winning the Ètoile de Bessèges - the first stage race victory of his career.
It was a tight battle with Mattias Skjelmose (Trek-Segafredo) that came down to a one-second margin - a gap that was the result of Skjelmose getting the jump on the EF Education-EasyPost rider on Le Mont Bouquet and earning four bonus seconds.
Powless had only 10.7 kilometres in the individual time trial Alès to reverse the result. The 26-year-old finished the stage five seconds quicker than the Dane to snatch the overall victory by a single second.
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"I knew I would have to ride the TT just off of feel. At the end of a stage race, it’s all just about what you feel and how much you have left in the tank. I’m just so happy I could repay all the hard work that my teammates gave and get some redemption for myself. This feels amazing," Powless said.
The previous day, Powless had been kicking himself for missing out on the stage win after a flawless performance in the first three stages kept him in the top 10 overall and a stellar final climb that distanced everyone except the Trek-Segafredo rider.
"I was really torn up that I slipped up on my tactics at the very end yesterday," Powless said. "I knew I had to be first into that final corner, but Skjelmose knew the same thing. He just went earlier than I was anticipating, so he got the better of me at the very end, but I felt like I still had a lot left to give, so I really wanted to make up for that today."
The overall win put Powless' versatility on display. He finished the uphill sprint on stage 1 in seventh, then survived crosswinds and crashes on stages 2 and 3 to get to Le Mont Bouquet in prime position to show his climbing prowess.
"We couldn’t lose focus for one second because every day, the wind was blowing. The crosswinds were tearing the race apart every day. To not put a foot wrong over five days of that is just such a testament to how strong our team is and how committed we were, and how good of teammates I have here. I couldn’t have picked a better team if I had my pick of the whole WorldTour to support me this week. It just makes me so proud to be a part of this team."
Since moving to EF-EasyPost from Jumbo in 2020, Powless has gone from racing his first Tour de France in 2022 to winning the Clasica San Sébastian in 2021 and showing his potential as a Tour de France GC rider in 2022. He's come into 2023 on fire, having won the GP la Marseillaise and now Bessèges.
"It feels amazing to have two wins now already. It gives me a lot of confidence, and it makes me feel very proud of how far I’ve been able to come and develop as a bike rider and show my standard as a bike racer, not just as a climber or a time trialist or a puncheur. Here, I was able to show my ability to really be a part of the race across any terrain.
"I think that’s my strength: my ability to be a part of the race no matter what. I’ve grown a lot in terms of my ability to follow my teammates well and use them well. I think it’s really created a nice atmosphere in the team, and now I have that confidence to start to lead the team better."
