Britain’s Bradley Wiggins continues to lead the Criterium du Dauphine after stage 2 won by Daniel Moreno (Katusha).
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Moreno sprinted clear of Julien Simon (Saur-Sojasun) and Tony Gallopin (RadioShack-Nissan) on the uphill finish at the end of the 160 kilometres from Lamastre to Saint-Felicien.
Wiggins crossed the line in 9th place, just behind his nearest challenger, Cadel Evans (BMC) who was 7th in the bunch sprint of 44 riders. With their rider in Yellow (Wiggins), Team Sky controlled the stage from the front on a stage which saw a lot of attacking from the drop of the flag. They say the best form of defence is attack and Wiggins surprised his rivals by joining an early break.
The move unsurprisingly did not stick but one with four riders did which left things calmer in the peloton controlled by Sky. As the lead of the break came down in the final 30 kilometres, the attacks resumed and Anthony Roux (FDJ-Big Mat) was able to bridge to the break. It was a short lived escape though as the break was caught inside the final 10 kilometres and BMC came to the fore hoping for a stage win for Cadel Evans.
That was to alude them however and with a sprint stage to come, the battle between Wiggins and Evans will be on hold. Wiggins said afterwards to Team Sky website “Everyone knew the race went straight uphill right away and our objective was to make it hard from the start. Once again the team were incredible, they were fantastic throughout the day and they made my job a lot easier.”
“It was all about respecting the jersey by defending it and also staying safe. It was also a hectic finish so it’s good to have got through it all okay and that’s another day down.”
STAGE 2
1 Daniel Moreno Fernandéz Katusha Team 04:02:38
2 Julien Simon Saur – Sojasun @ same time
3 Tony Gallopin RadioShack – Nissan @ same time
4 Rinaldo Nocentini Ag2R – La Mondiale @ same time
5 Jurgen Van Den Broeck Lotto – Belisol Team @ same time
6 Luis Leon Sanchez Gil Rabobank Cycling Team @ same time
7 Cadel Evans BMC Racing Team @ same time
8 Janez Brajkovic Astana Pro Team @ same time
9 Bradley Wiggins Sky Procycling @ same time
10 Thomas Voeckler Europcar @ same time
11 Tony Martin Omega Pharma – Quickstep @ same time
13 Richie Porte Sky Procycling @ same time
14 Vincenzo Nibali Liquigas – Cannondale @ same time
15 Christopher Froome Sky Procycling @ same time
16 David Millar Garmin – Barracuda @ same time
17 Michael Rogers Sky Procycling @ same time
26 Philippe Gilbert BMC Racing Team @ same time
30 Sylvain Chavanel Omega Pharma – Quickstep @ same time
100 Andy Schleck RadioShack – Nissan @ 1.47
101 George Hincapie BMC Racing Team @ same time
111 Edvald Boasson Hagen Sky Procycling @ 2.05
153 Daniel Martin Garmin – Barracuda @ 6.08
OVERALL
1 Bradley Wiggins Sky Procycling 08:45:42
2 Cadel Evans BMC Racing Team 00:01
3 Andriy Grivko Astana Pro Team 00:02
4 Carlos Barredo Llamazales Rabobank Cycling Team @ same time
5 Tony Martin Omega Pharma – Quickstep 00:04
6 Paul Martens Rabobank Cycling Team @ same time
7 Sylvain Chavanel Omega Pharma – Quickstep 00:05
8 J̩rome Coppel Saur РSojasun 00:06
9 Andrey Amador Bakkazakova Movistar Team @ same time
10 Richie Porte Sky Procycling 00:07
12 David Millar Garmin – Barracuda 00:09
15 Vincenzo Nibali Liquigas – Cannondale @ same time
16 Michael Rogers Sky Procycling @ same time
17 Jurgen Van Den Broeck Lotto – Belisol Team 00:10
20 Philippe Gilbert BMC Racing Team @ same time
21 Janez Brajkovic Astana Pro Team 00:14
23 Christopher Froome Sky Procycling @ same time
120 Andy Schleck RadioShack – Nissan 05:21
172 Daniel Martin Garmin – Barracuda 28:01
