Benoot the aptest

March 13 ^th 2020 - 16:54

Tiesj Benoot outwitted the rest of the Paris-Nice field to win the 161.5-km stage 6 in Apt on Friday after a brilliant show of strength by the whole of his Team Sunweb. The Belgian, winner of Strade Bianche in 2018, surged in the last 14 km behind his team-mate Soren Kragh Andersen, to solo his way toward the finish and win with a 22-seconds lead over Michael Matthews, also of Team Sunweb. Third place went to impressive Colombian champion Sergio Higuita (ED Pro Cycling), for many the favourite in tomorrow’s final stage to La Colmiane. Maximilian Schachmann (Bora-Hansgrohe) retained his yellow jersey but crashed in the final bend and only retains 36 seconds over Benoot and 1:01 seconds over Higuita and Felix Grosschartner (Bora Hansgrohe).  

Thirteen do not start

The real start was given to 109 riders at 12:30. Caleb Ewan (Lotto-Soudal), Elia Viviani (Cofidis), Jasper de Buyst (Lotto-Soudal), Rudy Barbier and Krists Neilands (Israel Start-Up Nation) and the whole of the Bahrain-McLaren team (Dylan Teuns, Pello Bilbao, Damiano Caruso, Ivan Garcia Cortina, Heinrich Haussler, Domen Novak, Hermann Pernsteiner and Jan Tratnik) did not start. The pace was high from the start, every team trying to tackle the first climbs of the day in the front. In the 2nd category Cote de Saumane-de-Vaucluse, Nicolas Edet (Cofidis) and Pierre Latour (Ag2R) broke clear and reached the top in that order as several riders were dropped.

Seven in the lead

Bryan Coquard (B&B Hotels), Stefan Kung (Groupama-FDJ), Anthony Perez (Cofidis) and Niccolo Bonifazio (Total Direct Energie) attacked after the climb. In the ascent of Col de Murs, Bonifazio was dropped and while Romain Combaud (Nippo Delko Provence) and Mika Cherel (Ag2R) briefly chased, the pack was never far as it dropped more and more riders. At the top of Col de Murs (Km 47.5), Edet reached the top in the front ahead of team-mate Perez. A group of seven riders emerged in the climb, comprising Edet, Perez, Kung, Winner Anacona (Arkea-Samsic), Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo), Alexis Gougeard and Romain Bardet (both Ag2R).

Edet collects KOM points

As stage 2 winner Giacomo Nizzolo (NTT Pro Cycling), Hugo Hofstetter and Mads Schmidt (Israel Start-Up Nation) quit, the lead of the seven escapees settled at around 1:30 ahead of a pack pulled by Deceuninck-Quick Step. Nicolas Edet kept collecting KOM points along the way, finishing first on top of Cote de Gordes (km 69) and Col du Pointu (Km 100.5). Edet attacked again, followed by Bardet as the peloton were reaching Apt for the first time (114.5). The leading group split and the two Frenchmen found themselves joining forces in the front to tackle the 2nd category Cote de Caseneuve.

Kragh Andersen goes for GC

While their former breakaway companions were reeled in one after the other, Soren Kragh Andersen (Team Sunweb), second overall at the start, chased on his own to try and bridge his 58-seconds gap with Max Schachmann. He caught Edet and Bardet with 33 km to go. The gap at that stage was about a minute but it gradually melted down to 20 seconds before the last climb, Cote d’Auribeau (2nd cat), when Edet was unable to stay with Bardet and Kragh Andersen. In the ascent, the Dane dropped Bardet (15 km to go) and soloed on. Vincenzo Nibali (Trek-Segafredo) attacked behind him with 14 km to go but Benoot countered and joined efforts with his team-mate in the finale before going on his own.

Benoot on his own

Benoot found himself alone in the lead in the finale as countless attacks took place in what remained of the peloton. But there was no denying the Belgian, who took advantage of the perfect work done by his team, rewarded by the second place earned by Michael Matthews. The Australian outsprinted all the other leading contenders of this stage and of Paris-Nice, Sergio Higuita, Bob Jungels and Julian Alpahilippe ahead of the final showdown at La Colmiane on Saturday. Maximilian Schachmann retained his overall lead, but crashed in the last bend and it was a clear warning for the German champion of what to expect tomorrow.