UAE Tour: Stage 6 – Win for Bennett

Irishman Sam Bennett does it again at the UAE Tour benefitted from a flawless lead-out and came out on top for the second time in three days at the World Tour race

UAE Tour: Stage 6 – Win for Bennett

Irishman Sam Bennett does it again at the UAE Tour benefitted from a flawless lead-out and came out on top for the second time in three days at the World Tour race

Photo: ©Tim De Waele / Getty Images

Team Press Release: Sam Bennett unleashed another spectacular burst of speed and added another victory to his palmares, this time in Palm Jumeirah – the manmade Dubai archipelago – where stage 6 of the UAE Tour concluded after 165 quiet kilometers. Bennett, who on Wednesday claimed the first World Tour bunch sprint of the season, relied again on the well-drilled lead-out train of Shane Archbold and Michael Mørkøv, who stomped their authority over the final kilometer and delivered him in a perfect position with 200 meters to go.

Once he came out of the Dane’s wheel, last year’s Tour de France green jersey winner never looked back and powered like a locomotive, comfortably winning by two bike lengths, a success that confirmed he is the most in-form sprinter in this start of the season. It was Sam’s ninth victory since joining Deceuninck – Quick-Step, one for which he praised his teammates.

“It feels amazing, but I wouldn’t have done it without my teammates today, who were again tremendous, just like on the first stage I won here. At the end of the day, it’s down to them and my very fast bike. The more sprints we do together, the better we’re getting. It’s just about repeating the same thing and making decisions in the final. We’re really getting to know each other and we’re pretty much nailing it at the minute.”

“I pushed hard this off-season because I wanted to have a strong start to the year and I’m happy to see it pays dividends. We’re having a great time here in the UAE Tour and it feels great to repay the team’s confidence and work. At the same time, it bodes well for Paris-Nice, which will be my next appointment of the season”, a beaming Sam said after the stage and his 28th win at World Tour level.

Race Leader Penalised
Tadej Pogačar has had a ten second time penalty after the sixth stage of the UAE Tour. The Slovenian remains in the lead in the standings, but the difference with second overall, Adam Yates, has decreased from 45 to 35 seconds.

The daily communiqué states that Pogačar has been punished for “pushing another rider.” His team and fellow countryman Jan Polanc has also been fined for that offense. They both received a ten-second time penalty and a four-point deduction in the points classification. They also have to pay a fine of 200 CHF (about 182 euros).

“I am really happy with how it went today,” Pogačar said after the stage. “Halfway through he race it was very hectic with the cross wind. Fortunately, we could all stay together and it became a sprint. Hopefully it will be a similar day tomorrow. ”

A day after arriving at Jebel Jais, the 22-year-old Slovenian was satisfied with his form. “I feel pretty good after yesterday’s efforts. I’m not worried about my shape, but I’m a bit afraid of bad luck. I want to avoid all the stress tomorrow and just finish the race. ”

Tomorrow the UAE Tour will end with a flat stage over 147 kilometers from Yas Island to Abu Dhabi city.

Pascal Ackermann (3rd) “The last 3 km on the coast had been really hectic. We knew that we had to be up there, and that worked out well. At the end we hit the front again a little early, therefore I decided to drop back a little. Unfortunately, I got boxed in then and also lost my speed. I had to wait long and accelerate again. The speed was there, but it wasn’t enough. I am sure we can make it tomorrow if we get the timing right.”

David Dekker (4th): The 23-year-old rider took the lead in the Points classification again from Tadej Pogačar.

Dekker was well placed in the wheel of stage winner Sam Bennett in the final sprint, but was unable to respond to the Irishman’s acceleration. “This creates mixed feelings,” said the 23-year-old neo-pro afterwards. “I was well positioned for the sprint, but my legs were just not good enough to do better. We were also a bit far back in the last kilometres, which meant that it took a lot of energy to get into the right position.”

He was happy that he could regain the lead in the points classification. “That’s a nice bonus. Tomorrow I will do everything I can to bring the green jersey to the Netherlands in my first race as a professional for Jumbo-Visma. That is certainly a goal.”

Kaden Groves (7th): “A lot better today, especially with the guys, we really lined up well and reached the best line. Maybe it was only a bit too early, but the guys all did their best and we were fine to take that position at that time.

At the end I probably gave up a few positions trying to avoid the wind, maybe I shouldn’t have tried that, but these things can happen when you are finding the best position at full speed shoulder to shoulder to the finish line.

We have been better each day, we haven’t done so much work together in the past and I must admit that it is really encouraging to see how well we are evolving with this squad and this makes it pretty encouraging. We are aiming at the right direction.“

Cees Bol (9th): “Today went a bit better than the other sprint stage,” explained Bol at the finish. “We showed some nice teamwork in the echelons which was good. We need to work on our timing a bit more in these high speed sprints and it’s a bit disappointing not to be closer to the front but we’re getting better and we still have one more chance to go for it tomorrow.”

Alex Dowsett on helping to create echelons during the stage: “There was a lot of nervousness”, he said. “Omer kept us in a good position until the crucial moment. ISN had six riders in the first echelon behind the breakaway. We made the split with other teams. That was a perfect piece of teamwork. It was a shame it did not work out.”

Stage
1. Sam Bennett Deceuninck-Quick Step 03:32:23
2. Elia Viviani Cofidis
3. Pascal Ackermann BORA-hansgrohe
4. David Dekker Jumbo-Visma
5. Fernando Gaviria UAE Team Emirates
6. Giacomo Nizzolo Qhubeka ASSOS
7. Kaden Groves Team BikeExchange
8. André Greipel Israel Start-Up Nation
9. Cees Bol Team DSM
10. Michael Mørkøv Deceuninck-Quick Step

12. Caleb Ewan
23. Adam Yates
47. Luke Rowe
68. Fred Wright
93. Mark Donovan
99. Alex Dowsett
111. Chris Froome
124. Harry Tanfield

Overall
1 Tadej Pogacar UAE Team Emirates 20:41:59
2 Adam Yates INEOS Grenadiers @ 35
3 Joao Almeida Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 01:02
4 Chris Harper Jumbo-Visma @ 01:44
5 Neilson Powless EF Education-NIPPO @ 01:46
6 Mattias Skjelmose Jensen Trek-Segafredo @ 02:37
7 Damiano Caruso Bahrain Victorious @ 02:39
8 Mattia Cattaneo Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 03:53
9 Ruben Fernandez Cofidis @ 04:13
10 Fausto Masnada Deceuninck-Quick Step @ 06:30