Sutton takes another, and the race lead, at Sun Tour
Daylong breakaway caught 150 meters from finish
- Article Extras
- Photos
- Results
- Race Index
The scenario was different but the outcome the same for Garmin-Slipstream sprinter Chris Sutton, who took his second consecutive stage win at Australia’s Jayco Herald Sun Tour Wednesday.
Unlike his win Tuesday, which came from a group whittled down through attrition in the wind, Sutton took the victory and subsequent race lead Wednesday out a hard-charging lead group established over a cat. 2 climb just 15km from the finish line.
Sutton’s group overcame a two-man breakaway only 150 meters from the line that included his teammate, Tom Peterson, as well as young Australian talent Leigh Howard (Jayco-AIS). For the second time in two days Sutton overcame Fly V Australia’s Jonathan Cantwell in a sprint finish, this time after a 164km stretch along the scenic Great Ocean Road of Southern Victoria that finished in the tourist town of Apollo Bay.
It was a dramatic finish that saw a change in race leadership due to time bonuses as well as Peterson angry about his team’s decision to chase down the breakaway rather than allow him to try his chances with a stage win.
"I'm speechless. I would have loved to have won it today, but we went with the team,” the 2009 Amgen Tour of California stage winner said during the presentation ceremony, where he assumed the KOM jersey that had previously belonged to teammate Alex Howes.
However Garmin director Matt White said that it was a no-brainer that the team would try to bring Sutton to the line to fight for the stage win rather than roll the dice with Peterson against Howard, a 19-year-old world elite track omnium champion who has signed with Columbia-HTC for the 2010 season.
“I told Tom he had to drop him on the climb or we were going to have a sprint behind,” White said. “We have to be realistic; Tom’s never going to beat Leigh Howard in a two-up sprint. Leigh Howard is one of the fastest kids in the world. (Sutton) would have a hard battle against him, let alone Tom, who’s a climber, not a sprinter.”
Peterson took over the KOM jersey, a small consolation prize, while Howard was awarded most aggressive for initiating the day’s breakaway, which was initially five men.
“It is a bit unfortunate to be caught so close to the line, and I am very disappointed. We went a long way out. At 15k to go we thought we had it and we probably slowed up a bit too much,” Howard said. “And then there was the obvious change of tactics from Garmin. I understand why they did it. They won the stage.”
CAUGHT AT THE END
Unlike Tuesday’s stage, which saw rain fall on the peloton immediately after the start, the clouds were less coy Wednesday, opening up with a rain shower 30 minutes before the start.
However also unlike Tuesday’s stage, the weather conditions along the Great Ocean Road were relatively mild, with wind speeds lower, temperatures higher, and the rain clouds (mostly) threatening but not delivering.
The day’s route began at the Maritime Village at Flagstaff Hill, with the peloton riding up a cobbled hill made wet by the rains. Though some riders complained about the likelihood of an uphill pileup, which seemed probable, the start went off without a hitch.
From the gun a five-man group rode away, containing Howard, Peterson, Frank Pipp (Bissell), Rhys Pollack (Drapac Porsche) and William Clark (Praties). However with Fly V Australia manning the front, the group never opened a significant gap over three minutes.
Peterson broke the breakaway up on the cat. 1 ascent of Lavers Hill, the first of two climbs on the day, and only Howard was able to follow.
Garmin went on the offensive on the day’s second climb, with Peterson looking to shed Howard and Sutton looking to shed Cantwell. Neither was ultimately successful, however, as Garmin’s Trent Lowe and Svein Tuft were able to crack Cantwell enough to open a 10-second gap, while Peterson and Howard crested the climb together.
As a 10-man group descended towards the finish behind the two leaders, Fly V’s top time trialists Phil Zajicek and Ben Day took to the front of an equally sized group to bring Cantwell back up to Sutton.
“Jono never cracked, he kept his head straight,” Day said. “We knew we could ride it back. At no stage did we panic.”
“At this level of racing, this was the first time I’ve ever had to defend a race lead on a climb like that,” Cantwell said. “But when you have your guys that will turn themselves inside out for you… I think having the yellow jersey on your shoulders makes you twice as strong as you really are.”
Fly V’s riders pulled all the way until the final 3km, when Wiggins and Tuft took over the chase.
“Wiggo is like a freight train,” Sutton said. “I can't describe how fast he goes. Today after Fly V did all the work, which was perfect for us, Trent Lowe took over at the front, and then Bradley and I tagged on, We don't really talk that much on the road. We just have a bit of a signal. Wiggo just taps his hand on his rear and I hang on.”
For the third time in three days, Wiggins led Sutton through the final kilometer, and for the second consecutive day, Sutton took the win.
“I thought Tom Peterson might win the stage but Fly V kept chasing,” Sutton said. “I feel a bit sorry for both of them. Leigh Howard is a great bike rider and Tom is going really strong at the moment. He was upset he missed the move yesterday and I am sure he is a bit upset today as well. But that is bike racing. We rode a team plan.”
Cantwell came into the finish on Sutton’s wheel, but was powerless to come around.
“There was a long descent into the finish, it was windy, and Garmin got on the front and put it in the gutter and tried to drop me and everybody else,” Cantwell said. “I saw it coming, I saw it happening, and I just boxed on and got onto Chris Sutton’s wheel. He rode me to the finish, but the climb took a lot of sting out of my legs. I was kind of cramping coming into the finish, and then I got caught up when we caught Peterson and Howard, and I lost a little bit of my momentum to those guys. But Chris Sutton had an easy sit all day, and he was the stronger man at the finish. We lose the jersey, but they have to control tomorrow, and that’s good for us.”
Sutton now sits one second ahead of Cantwell, with Wiggins third, at 35 seconds, Matt Wilson (Australian national) fourth, at 45 seconds, and Svein Tuft fifth, at 55 seconds. Should Sutton win the overall, it would complete the first father and son Tour victories, complementing father Gary's 1984 success.
Sutton added that though he’s happy to have taken another stage win, he insisted the team is riding for Wiggins and Tuft.
"We're riding for Wiggo and Svein,” he said. “The three of us can podium but the big dangers are Jono and Matthew Wilson.”
Thursday’s stage is a relatively flat 120km jaunt from Anglesea to Barwon Heads, and is not expected to have a major outcome on the general classification. The weather forecast is cloudy, with isolated showers and a chance of hail and thunder.
Race Note
• Renowned race announcer Phil Liggett arrived at the Sun Tour Wednesday morning, and was on hand for a breakfast function attended by Warrnambool brass and race VIPs. During a Q&A session with Australian race commentator Matt Keenan, Liggett praised Cadel Evans’ recent world championship ride, saying, “It was emphatic, a very tough race. Cadel had only one chance, and that was to attack right where he did. He hit them, they hesitated, and the best riders in the world all were caught looking at each other. They were all at their limit, and Cadel destroyed himself to hold them off. He rode like that at the final time trial of the Vuelta España, his face was a waterfall of sweat, He was proving a point. I think he was upset that he wasn’t given an outright leader role, instead he shared that with Simon Gerrans. People have always commentated that Cadel doesn’t attack, that he advertises his performances and that he cannot shed himself of big names. But he proved that wrong in Mendrisio. It was excellent, and I was delighted for him.”
Photo Gallery
Last 5 DaysMOST VIEWED »
- Team RadioShack releases its 2010 roster: 26 riders from 16 countries/
- UCI registers 17 ProTour teams
- Someone swiped a Trek-Livestrong team bike from the Mellow Johnny's store over the weekend.
- Tech Updates: Northwave, Campagnolo and more
- Astana hits another ProTour bump
- Technical Q&A with Lennard Zinn - Of drivetrains, tires and pressure
- The Mailbag - Swimming, pure sport, money and more
- Pereiro Astana-bound?
