Cycling: The Cannondale-Drapac team was finally able to celebrate again on the 5th stage of the Tour of California. Andrew Talansky secured Cannondale's first WorldTour victory in over two years with his triumph at Mount Baldy. Rafal Majka, who was second at the same time today, is still in the lead in the overall standings.
Rafal Majka parries Andrew Talansky's attack
The king's stage of the Tour of California is behind us. 15 drivers broke away immediately after the start, including world champion Peter Sagan (Bora-hansgrohe) and the German Nils Politt (Katusha-Alpecin). Due to the speed of the LottoNL-Jumbo team, all the fugitives were gradually collected again. Only the runner-up 4th stage, Rob Britton (Rally Cycling) fought back until 5,5 kilometers before the finish. Another 1,5 kilometers later, Andrew Talansky (Cannondale-Drapac) made his first attack. The group of favorites was immediately decimated. 3,5 kilometers from the finish line, Talansky attacked again. Only Majka and George Bennett (LottoNL-Jumbo) could follow. Finally, there was a three-way battle for the stage win, which Talansky secured ahead of Majka and Bennett. The German Maximilian Schachmann (Quick-Step Floors) finished in 20th place, dropping him from 10th place to 16th overall.
Tomorrow the decision will be made in the time trial
The overall ranking after today's 5th stage is not yet decided. Tomorrow, the 24-mile time trial at Big Bear Lake will decide overall victory in the 2017 Tour of California. Above all, Majka will fear Brent Bookwalter (BMC) and Andrew Talansky. The two are just 1:02 minutes and 44 seconds behind the Polish champion and are considered the better drivers in the battle against the clock. But the distance to be covered could be too short for both of them. George Bennett is just six seconds behind Majka and could cause an upset with perfect form on the day. However, as much as his team LottoNl-Jumbo worked at the Tour of California, it would not be undeserved. Unfortunately Maximilian Schachmann no longer has a chance to make the top 10 due to the large deficit.
The result of the 5th stage of the Tour of California
| PLATZ | Driver | Country | Our Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Andrew Talansky | USA | Cannondale Drapac | 3:43:15 |
| 2. | Rafal Mayka | Poland | Bora, hansgrohe | st |
| 3. | George Bennett | Australia | LottoNL Jumbo | + 0: 02 |
| 4. | Ian Boswell | USA | Sky | + 0: 05 |
| 5. | Brent Bookwalter | USA | BMC | + 0: 08 |
| 6. | Sam Oomen | Netherlands | Sunweb | + 0: 20 |
| 7. | Lachlan Morton | Australia | Dimension Data | + 0: 27 |
| 8. | Tao Geoghegan Hart | Great Britain | Sky | + 0: 40 |
| 9. | Robert Geink | Netherlands | LottoNL Jumbo | st |
| 10. | Sepp kuss | USA | Rally cycling | + 0: 56 |
Overall ranking of the Tour of California after 5 of 7 stages
| PLATZ | Driver | Country | Our Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Rafal Mayka | Poland | Bora, hansgrohe | 19:47:57 |
| 2. | George Bennett | Australia | LottoNL Jumbo | + 0: 06 |
| 3. | Ian Boswell | USA | Sky | + 0: 25 |
| 4. | Andrew Talansky | USA | Cannondale Drapac | + 0: 44 |
| 5. | Lachlan Morton | Australia | Dimension Data | + 0: 49 |
| 6. | Brent Bookwalter | USA | BMC | + 1: 02 |
| 7. | Sam Oomen | Netherlands | Sunweb | + 1: 14 |
| 8. | Robert Geink | Netherlands | LottoNL Jumbo | + 1: 31 |
| 9. | Tao Geoghegan Hart | Great Britain | Sky | + 1: 34 |
| 10. | Vegard stake lengths | Norway | UAE | + 1: 50 |