Cycling: Second win of the season for Sam Bennett (Deceuninck – Quick-Step). After the Irishman already den Start of the Tour Down Under won, he was now able to celebrate at the Race Torquay in Victoria. The German Roger Kluge (Lotto – Soudal) finished ninth.
Bennett celebrates the perfect start to the season
Only 21 riders were to finish at the same time in the first group of the Race Torquay. Fastest of them was once again Sam Bennett (Deceuninck - Quick Step). The Irish champion left the two Italians in the sprint James Nizzolo (NTT) and Alberto Dainese (Sunweb) behind. Roger Kluge (Lotto – Soudal) – actually approaching from Caleb ewan – was allowed to take part in the sprint himself, since his captain dropped back laps before the end. The race was held for the first time and is considered a warm-up for the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, which is held on Sunday.
Sam Bennett:
“It was a tough race. But at one point I asked my guys if they could make it a little harder for everyone else. And that's exactly what they did. You did a perfect job. It was really tough as the first test after the Tour Down Under. Because it was a very difficult course. But it was a good stretch. The distance of just 130 kilometers made for an aggressive race.”
No chance for the breakaway around Hermann Pernsteiner
Before that, a breakaway group of five dominated the race. Nick Schultz (Mitchelton-Scott), Neilson Powless (EF), RobPower (Sunweb), Clement Chevrier (AG2R La Mondiale) and the Austrian Herman Pernsteiner (Bahrain – McLaren) didn't stand a chance against the sprinter teams on the 13,3-kilometre circuit, which had to be ridden a total of ten times. Also the late attacks of Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott), Dries Deveynns (Deceuninck – Quick Step) and Pavel Shivakov (Ineos) were brought back in time. Then the Danish champion drove Michael Mørkøv (Deceuninck - Quick-Step) set up the sprint perfectly for his captain, who only had to complete it.
Thrilled to take another win in Australia, on a tough course in Torquay. Thank you so much again to me @deceuninck_qst teammate for delivering me perfectly! 📸 @GettyImages pic.twitter.com/J75ZSaWGJn
— Sam Bennett (@Sammmy_Be) January 30, 2020