The young British climber finished in the top 5 at Lago di Misurina, midway to the top of Tre Cime di Lavaredo.
Deceuninck – Quick-Step made their presence felt for the second day in a row at the Adriatica Ionica Race, controlling the gap of the escapees right from the start of stage 2 (Palmanova – Lago di Misurina, 204.6 kilometers), then taking the race by the scruff of its neck and going on the attack early, on Sella Ciampigotto, where the forcing of our team cut the leaders’ gap and shrunk the peloton to around twenty riders.
From that group, ten riders – including Remco Evenepoel, Mikkel Honoré and James Knox – extricated themselves ten kilometers from the top, caught and dropped the last survivor of the break and continued to extend their lead on the chasers, who at that point sat more than one minute behind. Averaging 7.9% over 6.3 kilometers, the final ascent of the day was the perfect springboard for attacks, and the first to test the waters there was none other than neo-pro Remco Evenepoel.
The Belgium Tour winner opened a small gap, but those behind worked well together and reeled him in with six kilometers to go. Several skirmishes followed, but none proved to be decisive until inside the final kilometer, when Mark Padun (Bahrain-Merida) took the win courtesy of a late acceleration, and with it, the leader’s jersey, worn during Friday’s stage by Alvaro Hodeg, following his beautiful victory in Grado.
James Knox, who has recently extended his agreement with Deceuninck – Quick-Step until 2021, suffered in the closing kilometers, but put in a valiant effort and dug really deep despite the inclement conditions, coming over the line in a solid fifth place, just a handful of seconds behind the front quartet.
“We controlled the race well and the guys were extraordinary, on both flat and climbs. The race exploded on the penultimate ascent, where the group got smaller and smaller. I was there with Remco and Mikkel, then just with Remco after an injection of pace, and he tried something, but they brought him back on the last climb. I too got distanced later, but kept fighting and closed the gaps. Unfortunately, I got dropped again when they sprinted with the line in sight, but overall, I am pretty happy with how the legs are after the break and this result is really something to build on”, said James after climbing to fourth in the standings.
With two stages remaining, Deceuninck – Quick-Step continue to top the team classification at Adriatica Ionica, while Alvaro Hodeg remains in firm control of the points ranking.
Photo credit: ©Luc Claessen/ Getty Images
