Second win for Boonen in Qatar

Tom Boonen (Quick Step) won the fifth stage of the Tour of Qatar on Thursday after his teammates chased down an attack just before the finish in Madinat al Shamal, at the very tip of the Qatar peninsula.

The dangerous 14-man group included Fabian Cancellara and Stuart O'Grady (Saxo Bank), Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Transitions), John Murphy (BMC), Daniele Bennati (Liquigas) and overall race leader Wouter Mol (Vacansoleil). Boonen had been with them but cleverly let the move go clear and saved his energy for the sprint. It proved to be the right tactic and he outfoxed many of his rivals before producing another good sprint to win his second stage in this year's race.

Italy's Danilo Napolitano (Katusha) was second and Edvald Boasson Hagen (Team Sky) was third, paying back his teammates for their work in the pursuit of the 14-rider attack.

Farrar finished 10th in the sprint after using most of his energy in the unsuccessful late attack, while Taylor Phinney (Trek-Livestrong) was 17th after breaking a spoke in the final kilometre.

Mol finished 22nd, in the same time as Boonen, and so kept his nine-second lead on Geert Steurs (Topsport Vlaanderen). Boonen pulled back 10 seconds for winning the stage but is still 1:45 behind Mol.

"I'm super happy to win again. It was a headwind and so it was hard to pass, so I think I did the sprint right," Boonen said.

"I stopped pedaling in the front echelon because it's stupid to ride there by yourself and waste all your strength. I was waiting for as many people as possible to come back so we could get organized. It was the right decision because I had so many teammates behind me to help in the chase."

With only a light breeze forecast for Friday's final stage, Boonen admitted he had no chance of taking time back on Mol and winning overall.

"I think Wouter Mol will be the winner, it's impossible to get back the time. We'll try for another stage win and hopefully I can finish second overall," he said.

Attackers fall into Boonen's trap

At the exposed start area near the Lusail fort, the wind seemed to be increasing and most riders went for a warm-up ride before the start, just in case the race exploded into echelons.

Saxo Bank tried to split the peloton several during the stage but the cross winds just weren't strong enough to do any real damage and threaten Mol's overall lead. Adam Hansen (HTC-Columbia), Mikhail Ignatiev (Katusha), Svein Tuft (Garmin), Martin Reimer (Cervélo TestTeam), Simon Zahner (BMC) and Christophe Riblon (AG2R-La Mondiale) eventually broke clear but they were left to hang out front by the bunch, with the gap narrowing and opening several times. They opened a gap of 2:30 after 76km but were caught after 115km as a tailwind blew the race north.

When the road turned right after the last sprint, the wind blew from the left and broke the field into numerous echelons. The front group looked set to fight out the finish but first Heinrich Haussler (Cervélo TestTeam) sat up and drifted back to the chase group and then Boonen and others did the same.

Cancellara worked on the front for O'Grady and dragged the 14 riders clear, and Farrar and the Liquigas riders also took big turns on the front, but they had fallen into a trap. The chasers hunted them down as the finish approached on the horizon and they were doomed.

Daniele Oss (Liquigas) tried a solo attack in the final two kilometres and then his teammate Quinziato tried a move, followed by Murphy. However the chasers swallowed the 14-rider move and everything was set for another sprint finish.

Theo Bos (Cervélo TestTeam) again lead out the sprint with his formidable power. But he still has a lot to learn about road sprints, and his teammates again failed to get on his back wheel when he accelerated.
Best young rider in the race Roger Kluge (Milram) managed to get on and so too did Boonen, letting Bos give them a perfect lead out.

When Bos faded in the headwind, Boonen came around him and Kluge and opened up his own sprint. He may no longer be as fast as Mark Cavendish, but Boonen seems back to his best and on great early-season form. Napolitano and Boasson Hagen came out of his slipstream before the line but were unable to get past him into the strong headwind. It was win number 17 for Boonen in Qatar.

Boonen hogged the winner's podium but Mol was just as happy. With only Friday's 123.5km stage to go, he looks set to win overall and take the biggest victory of his five-year professional career.

"There is no way I can lose now," he said, happy to tempt fate before the final day's racing.

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