The second stage of the Santos Tour Down Under had a hard obstacle at 10 kilometers from the finish when the riders had to climb Corkscrew Hill (2,4 km, 9,4%). A group of 4 riders escaped from the bunch early in the stage, but were reeled in before the final climb.
On Corkscrew Hill Geraint Thomas (Sky) attacked. In the descent he was accompanied by Ben Hermans (Radioshack), Javier Moreno (Movistar) and George Bennett (Radioshack). The 4 leaders were chases by a group of 10 riders. Behind that group there was a big crash in the peloton, which split the bunch up completely.
After 116 kilometres Thomas took the win, outsprinting Moreno and Hermans. Serge Pauwels was the first OPQS rider in 17th place, 21 seconds behind Thomas.
