Result: RideLondon-Surrey Classic

Norway’s Alexander Kristoff repaid his Katusha teammates for the solid work by winning the bunch sprint in the 2017 RideLondon Classic on Sunday

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Result: RideLondon-Surrey Classic

Kristoff celebrates a victory in London

Alexander Kristoff bounced back from a disappointing Tour de France to win the fifth Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic with a thrilling sprint finish on The Mall in central London today.

The 30-year-old had six wins under his belt this season going into the Tour and was aiming for two stage wins before a heavy crash descending the Col d’Ornon ruined his chances, leaving the Norwegian with facial injuries and wounds to his arms and hands.

But the Katusha-Alpecin rider struggled on to place fourth in the Green Jersey contest and today showed points winner Michael Matthews what could have been when he left the Australian in his wake with a furious finish to take the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic title.

Kristoff’s head and body were certainly in the right place when he burst off the wheel of Ireland’s Sam Bennett in the final few metres of the race today. The Bora – Hansgrohe rider had been picked to win by race director Mick Bennett and seemed to be in the perfect position as a large bunch swung around the final bend and onto the deceptively long finishing straight.

Stuyven and Trentin race towards the finish with a gap of 15 to 30 seconds and caught with a K to go … well judged sprinter teams!

But with Matthews lurking behind him and Buckingham Palace gleaming up ahead, Kristoff released all his post-Tour angst to seal the victory. In the end it was just reward for his team’s hard racing over the 187km course after they had done the lion’s share of the work to catch a two-man break inside the last kilometre. Behind him Bennett’s challenge slipped away as Magnus Cort Neilsen, the Dane from Orica-Scott, stole up the side to take second with Matthews matching his third-place finish from 12 months ago.

For much of the day it was touch and go whether any of the big-name sprinters would get anything out of the day as the hard-racing peloton kept splitting apart as small groups broke away to open gaps that stubbornly refused close. First, it was a five-man break containing Kristoff’s Katusha teammate Mads Wurst Schmidt, which opened a gap after 30km that grew to four minutes by the time they reached the first serious climb at Staple Lane, where Duval and Kreder lost touch.

Schmidt took the Continental Tyres King of the Mountain points and went on to take the KoM title at the end of the race as Leith Hill and Ranmore Common came and went before the remaining trio were caught by the pack 80km from home. With one more loop around Ranmore and the crucial climb up Box Hill to come, the British-based Team Sky appeared to get the race under control. Tao Geoghegan-Hart set an infernal pace to set up Peter Kennaugh for an attack, the Briton taking Matteo Trentin of Quick Step-Floors and South Africa’s time trial champion Daryl Impey of Orica-Scott with him.

Kennaugh soon let them go, sliding back to a chase group before Trek Segafredo’s Jasper Stuyven joined the leading pair after Box Hill. With less than 50km to go, this quality trio had a 20-second lead. The threesome had a howling tail-wind at their backs and Stuyven’s Segafredo teammates disrupting the chase as the London-bound train steamed through Leatherhead, Oxshott, Esher and on to Kingston-upon-Thames on the outskirts of the capital, the streets lined with cheering fans enjoying the late afternoon sun.

This famously tough run-in spelt the end for Geraint Thomas’s brave break last year, and it did for Impey this time, though Stuyven and Trentin held their advantage as they tailed each other over Putney Bridge and on to the north bank of the river. With 5km to go there was still all to play for as Sunweb, Katusha and Sky began to pile on the pressure. The two-man break survived all the way to Millbank with the Houses of Parliament looming above them, but it was all in vain.

The catch finally came on Whitehall with 1km to go before Kristoff found Bennett’s wheel at the perfect moment to seal a perfect day.

“The team did amazing work today, especially Nils to pull back those guys. There were not many teams who wanted to work with us so we did the main job and pulled it off at the end,” said Alexander Kristoff.

Alexander Kristoff has recovered well from a serious crash in the last week of the Tour de France. With the Tour now in the rear-view mirror, he and his teammates set out to get the win on Sunday. Teammate Mads Würtz Schmidt was part of an early break, allowing KATUSHA ALPECIN to sit in for a time while the race unfolded, with the King of the Mountain classification awarded to him for his efforts. Later when a small gap was holding and the finish line was drawing closer, the team riders went to the front and delivered Alexander Kristoff to the final with precision.

“After my crash in the Tour I did not feel so good and not in training either, but today it was ok. I could not really follow on the climb, but I felt much better than I did at the Tour. I knew I had a good shot and at the end Michael Mørkøv placed me very well for the final and I just had to take it from there,” said team leader Alexander Kristoff.

The early break of five in the race which was brought back before the fireworks from team Sky.

Michael Matthews: “To be honest I felt really bad out there all day. It was not my best day on the bike; I couldn’t do anything. I tried to have an easy week after the Tour and I wanted to be really good this weekend, but I guess I’ve still got it in my legs. The team was still able to deliver me to the front which was nice. We stuck to the plan and in the end third was all we could get. My goal was to attack on the climbs but I wasn’t able to make the difference. Some days you have bad days and I am still pleased to be able to finish third after a tough three weeks at the Tour.”

Alexander Kristoff, Team Katusha Alpecin  “It was great to win here. After the disappointment of the Tour it’s really nice to bounce back and win in London. I knew my body was healing after the crash and luckily I had enough strength in my legs today to win. It’s been a long time without a big win for me and I was so frustrated in the Tour, but I knew my head was there; I just needed to get my legs back.”

“I was suffering on the climbs but my team did an amazing job to bring the break back at the end. That’s what we needed to do to win but we’ve not been team racing so well recently. It’s great to get it right here because this is a big race now, a WorldTour event and it’s getting bigger. Now it will always be one I can say, when I’m talking on TV, ‘That’s a race I won.’”

Magnus Nielsen Cort, Orica-Scott “It was a really hard race today. We raced hard from the beginning. I think everyone felt up for it now that it’s a WorldTour event. Many teams wanted to make the part in the middle really hard, because there is an easier hour coming home, so it was really hard out there in the hills. All the teams that weren’t in the break were really pushing the pace in the last 50km to try to catch the break.

“I did this race two years ago. It was hard back then too. I felt I was close at the end and I really wanted to win but I’m sure that tomorrow I’ll feel pleased with second. I like the race, it’s well organised race with no traffic and great crowds.”

Jasper Stuyven, Trek Segafredo “We tried! I said before the race that we would attack during the hilly zone and I did but maybe we needn’t some more guys in the front group. At the end when Impey dropped there were only two of us, which makes it even harder. We executed the plan but there weren’t enough people in the group to make it work.

“With 5km to go I thought we could still make it. I talked with Matteo [Trentin] that we should just sprint, no gambling, so we left it all out there. I’m pleased that I did my best.  It’s a really nice race, and the wind was definitely in our favour today. It was a nice course and a very hard day but I liked the race.”

Matteo Trentin (Quickstepfloors) “When Sky started to pull hard on the small climb, I thought I would follow up on their attack, because if a small group comes over the top you can make it difficult for the pack to return to the front. So we just went full gas, but unfortunately we weren’t enough riders and once the peloton began the chase it was difficult to keep them at bay. I’m sad our move didn’t survive, but on the other hand I’m satisfied with the condition and the legs”, Matteo explained after Sunday’s race.
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Result

1 KRISTOFF, Alexander KAT TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN 04:05:41 +00:00
2 NEILSON Magnus
3 MATTHEWS, Michael SUN TEAM SUNWEB
4 VANMARKE, Sep CDT CANNONDALE DRAPAC PROFESSIONAL CY
5 WIPPERT, Wouter CDT CANNONDALE DRAPAC PROFESSIONAL CY
6 DRUCKER, Jean Pierre BMC BMC RACING TEAM
7 DEMPSTER, Zakkari ICA ISRAEL CYCLING ACADEMY
8 BORA – HANSGROHE 13 BENNETT, Sam
9 BARBIER, Rudy ALM AG2R LA MONDIALE PRO CYCLING TEAM
10 NAESEN, Oliver ALM AG2R LA MONDIALE PRO CYCLING TEAM
11 VIVIANI, Elia SKY TEAM SKY
12 BAUER, Jack QST QUICK STEP – FLOORS
13 SWIFT, Ben UAD UAE TEAM EMIRATES
14 KREDER, Michel ABS AQUA BLUE SPORT
15 NAPOLITANO, Danilo WGG WANTY – GROUP GOBERT
16 THEUNS, Edward TFS TREK-SEGAFREDO
17 RICKAERT, Jonas SVB SPORT VLAANDEREN-BALOISE
18 KOCH, Jonars CCC CCC SPRANDI POLKOWICE
19 GAVAZZI, Francesco ANS ANDRONI – SIDERMEC – BOTTECCHIA
20 HOULE, Hugo ALM AG2R LA MONDIALE PRO CYCLING TEAM
21 LAMPAERT, Yves QST QUICK STEP – FLOORS
22 THWAITES, Scott DDD TEAM DIMENSION DATA
23 KUNG, Stefan BMC BMC RACING TEAM
24 GIBBONS, Ryan DDD TEAM DIMENSION DATA
25 LASTRA MARTINEZ, Jonathan CJR CAJA RURAL SEGUROS RGA PRO CYCLING T
26 PONZI, Simone
27 JANSEN, Amund Grondahl TLJ TEAM LOTTO NL-JUMBO
28 MAES, Nikolas LTS LOTTO SOUDAL
29 VAN HECKE, Preben SVB SPORT VLAANDEREN-BALOISE
30 VLIEGEN, Loic BMC BMC RACING TEAM
31 ZABEL, Rick KAT TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN
32 VAN HOECKE, Gijs
33 LANGEVELD, Sebastian CDT CANNONDALE DRAPAC PROFESSIONAL CY
34 GREIPEL, Andre LTS LOTTO SOUDAL
35 BELLITTI, Manuel WIL WILIER TRIESTINA – SELLE ITALIA
36 NEILANDS, Krists ICA ISRAEL CYCLING ACADEMY
37 VERMOTE, Julien QST QUICK STEP – FLOORS
38 SELIG, Rudiger
39 OWSIAN, Lukasz CCC CCC SPRANDI POLKOWICE
40 MEURISSE, Xandro WGG WANTY – GROUP GOBERT
41 RAST, Gregory TFS TREK-SEGAFREDO
42 FERRARI, Fabricio CJR CAJA RURAL SEGUROS RGA PRO CYCLING T
43 DE KORT, Koen TFS TREK-SEGAFREDO
44 AMEZOUETA, Julen — 00:00
45 BRANDLE, Matthias TFS TREK-SEGAFREDO
46 IRISARRI RINCON, Jon CJR CAJA RURAL SEGUROS RGA PRO CYCLING T
47 GASTAUER, Ben ALM AG2R LA MONDIALE PRO CYCLING TEAM
48 QUINZIATO, Manuel BMC BMC RACING TEAM
49 VENTOSO, Francisco BMC BMC RACING TEAM
50 VANBAARLE, Dylan Y
51 CHRISTIAN, Mark ABS AQUA BLUE SPORT
52 ARNDT, Nikias SUN TEAM SUNWEB
53 VENTER, Jaco DDD TEAM DIMENSION DATA 04:05:52 +00:11
54 WYNANTS, Maarten TLJ TEAM LOTTO NL-JUMBO 04:05:55 +00:14
55 DOCKER, Mitch ORS ORICA – SCOTT @ 00:14
56 MORKOV, Michael @ 00:14
57 SIEBERG, Marcel LTS LOTTO SOUDAL @ 00:14
58 HAYMAN, Mathew ORS ORICA – SCOTT 04:06:05 +00:24
59 HEPBURN, Michael ORS ORICA – SCOTT 04:06:18 +00:37
60 POLITT, Nils KAT TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN @ 00:37
61 MARTENS, Paul TLJ TEAM LOTTO NL-JUMBO @ 00:37
62 STANNARD, Ian @ 00:37
63 TEUNISSEN, Mike SUN TEAM SUNWEB 04:06:40 +00:59
64 SINKELDAM, Ramon SUN TEAM SUNWEB @ 00:59
65 LAENGEN, Vegard Stake UAD UAE TEAM EMIRATES @ 00:59
66 KENNAUGH, Peter SKY TEAM SKY 04:06:49 +01:08
67 HALLER, Marco KAT TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN 04:06:58 +01:17
68 STUYVEN, Jasper 04:07:00 +01:19
69 TRENTIN, Matteo QST QUICK STEP – FLOORS @ 01:19
70 KLUGE, Roger ORS ORICA – SCOTT 04:07:06 +01:25
71 KUMP, Marko UAD UAE TEAM EMIRATES 04:07:15 +01:34
72 ANDERSEN, Soren Kragh SUN TEAM SUNWEB 04:07:26 +01:45
73 IMPEY, Daryl ORS ORICA – SCOTT 04:11:02 +05:21
74 SCHILLINGER, Andreas 04:14:45 +09:04
75 STEELS, Stijn SVB SPORT VLAANDEREN-BALOISE +09:04 —
76 PERRY, Benjamin ICA ISRAEL CYCLING ACADEMY +09:04 —
77 BERARD, Julien ALM AG2R LA MONDIALE PRO CYCLING TEAM @ 09:04
78 EDMONSON, Alexander ORS ORICA – SCOTT @ 09:04
79 PALUTA, Michal CCC CCC SPRANDI POLKOWICE @ 09:04
80 GEOGHEGAN HART, Tao @ 09:04
81 TROSINO, Mirko WIL WILIER TRIESTINA – SELLE ITALIA +09:04 —
82 ZURLO, Federico UAD UAE TEAM EMIRATES 04:18:42 +13:01
83 KEISSE, Iljo QST QUICK STEP – FLOORS 04:18:51 +13:10
84 BRAMMEIER, Matthew ABS AQUA BLUE SPORT @ 13:10
85 PLUCINSKI, Leszek CCC CCC SPRANDI POLKOWICE @ 13:10
86 ISRAEL CYCLING ACADEMY +13:10 122 DIAZ GALLEDO, Jose Manuel —
87 DOULL, Owain SKY TEAM SKY @ 13:10
88 CLARKE, William CDT CANNONDALE DRAPAC PROFESSIONAL CY +13:10 —
89 MCNALLY, Mark WGG WANTY – GROUP GOBERT @ 13:10
90 DOUBEY, Fabien WGG WANTY – GROUP GOBERT @ 13:10
91 BONUSI, Raffaello ANS ANDRONI – SIDERMEC – BOTTECCHIA @ 13:10
92 ZABALA LOPEZ, Josu CAJA RURAL SEGUROS RGA PRO CYCLING T @ 13:10
93 PAGE, Dylan CJR CAJA RURAL SEGUROS RGA PRO CYCLING T @ 13:10
94 BOOM, Lars TLJ TEAM LOTTO NL-JUMBO @ 13:10
95 DECLERCQ, Benjamin SVB SPORT VLAANDEREN-BALOISE +13:10 —
96 ELISSONDE, Kenny SKY TEAM SKY @ 13:10
97 PALINI, Andrea ANS ANDRONI – SIDERMEC – BOTTECCHIA @ 13:10
98 CASTELIJNS, Twan @ 13:10
99 HOFLAND, Moreno LTS LOTTO SOUDAL @ 13:10
100 TACIAK, Mateusz CCC CCC SPRANDI POLKOWICE @ 13:10
101 TROIA, Oliviero UAD UAE TEAM EMIRATES @ 13:10
102 GANNA, Filippo UAD UAE TEAM EMIRATES @ 13:10
103 SCHMIDT, Mads Wurtz KAT TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN @ 13:10
104 BORA – HANSGROHE 17 SCHWARZMANN, Michale @ 13:10
105 THOMSON, Jay DDD TEAM DIMENSION DATA 04:22:59 +17:18
106 CONSONNI, Simone UAD UAE TEAM EMIRATES @ 17:18

King of the Mountains Classification

KoM – Staple Lane – KM 54.0
1 SCHMIDT, Mads Wurtz TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN KAT 6
2 CASTELIJNS, Twan TEAM LOTTO NL-JUMBO TLJ 5
3 KEISSE, Iljo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 4
4 KREDER, Wesley WANTY – GROUP GOBERT WGG 3
5 DUVAL, Julien AG2R LA MONDIALE PRO CYCLING T ALM 2
6 LAENGEN, Vegard Stake UAE TEAM EMIRATES UAD 1

KoM – Leith Hill – KM 76.5
1 CASTELIJNS, Twan TEAM LOTTO NL-JUMBO TLJ 6
2 SCHMIDT, Mads Wurtz TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN KAT 5
3 KEISSE, Iljo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 4
4 ELISSONDE, Kenny TEAM SKY SKY 3
5 LAENGEN, Vegard Stake UAE TEAM EMIRATES UAD 2
6 DOULL, Owain TEAM SKY SKY 1

KoM – Ranmore Common – KM 93.0
1 SCHMIDT, Mads Wurtz TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN KAT 6
2 CASTELIJNS, Twan TEAM LOTTO NL-JUMBO TLJ 5
3 KEISSE, Iljo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 4
4 GEOGHEGAN HART, Tao TEAM SKY SKY 3
5 SWIFT, Ben UAE TEAM EMIRATES UAD 2
6 KENNAUGH, Peter TEAM SKY SKY 1

KoM – Ranmore Common – KM 112.0
1 TRENTIN, Matteo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 6
2 KENNAUGH, Peter TEAM SKY SKY 5
3 IMPEY, Daryl ORICA – SCOTT ORS 4
4 KUNG, Stefan BMC RACING TEAM BMC 3
5 BAUER, Jack QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 2
6 ANDERSEN, Soren Kragh TEAM SUNWEB SUN 1

KoM – Box Hill – KM 131.0
1 IMPEY, Daryl ORICA – SCOTT ORS 6
2 TRENTIN, Matteo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 5
3 STUYVEN, Jasper TREK-SEGAFREDO TFS 4
4 NAESEN, Oliver AG2R LA MONDIALE PRO CYCLING T ALM 3
5 KUNG, Stefan BMC RACING TEAM BMC 2
6 BAUER, Jack QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 1

Overall
1 SCHMIDT, Mads Wurtz TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN KAT 17
2 CASTELIJNS, Twan TEAM LOTTO NL-JUMBO TLJ 16
3 KEISSE, Iljo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 12
4 TRENTIN, Matteo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 11
5 IMPEY, Daryl ORICA – SCOTT ORS 10
6 KENNAUGH, Peter TEAM SKY SKY 6
7 KUNG, Stefan BMC RACING TEAM BMC 5
8 STUYVEN, Jasper TREK-SEGAFREDO TFS 4
9 NAESEN, Oliver AG2R LA MONDIALE PRO CYCLING T ALM 3
10 BAUER, Jack QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 3
11 LAENGEN, Vegard Stake UAE TEAM EMIRATES UAD 3
12 GEOGHEGAN HART, Tao TEAM SKY SKY 3
13 ELISSONDE, Kenny TEAM SKY SKY 3
14 SWIFT, Ben UAE TEAM EMIRATES UAD 2
15 ANDERSEN, Soren Kragh TEAM SUNWEB SUN 1
16 DOULL, Owain TEAM SKY SKY 1

Sprints Classification

Sprint – Hampton Court – KM 20.5
1 BRANDLE, Matthias TREK-SEGAFREDO TFS 5
2 ANDERSEN, Soren Kragh TEAM SUNWEB SUN 3
3 SCHWARZMANN, Michale BORA – HANSGROHE BOH 2
4 DOCKER, Mitch ORICA – SCOTT ORS 1
S
print – Dorking – High Street – KM 86.5
1 CASTELIJNS, Twan TEAM LOTTO NL-JUMBO TLJ 5
2 KEISSE, Iljo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 3
3 SCHMIDT, Mads Wurtz TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN KAT 2
4 CLARKE, William CANNONDALE DRAPAC PROFESS CDT 1

Sprint – Dorking – High Street – KM 106.0
1 ELISSONDE, Kenny TEAM SKY SKY 5
2 GEOGHEGAN HART, Tao TEAM SKY SKY 3
3 STANNARD, Ian TEAM SKY SKY 2
4 KENNAUGH, Peter TEAM SKY SKY 1

Sprint – Dorking – High Street – KM 125.0
1 IMPEY, Daryl ORICA – SCOTT ORS 5
2 TRENTIN, Matteo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 3
3 STUYVEN, Jasper TREK-SEGAFREDO TFS 2
4 VANMARKE, Sep CANNONDALE DRAPAC PROFESS CDT 1

Sprint – Wimbledon Village – KM 168.0
1 TRENTIN, Matteo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 5
2 STUYVEN, Jasper TREK-SEGAFREDO TFS 3
3 POLITT, Nils TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN KAT 2
4 ANDERSEN, Soren Kragh TEAM SUNWEB SUN 1

Overall
1 TRENTIN, Matteo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 8
2 BRANDLE, Matthias TREK-SEGAFREDO TFS 5
3 STUYVEN, Jasper TREK-SEGAFREDO TFS 5
4 IMPEY, Daryl ORICA – SCOTT ORS 5
5 ELISSONDE, Kenny TEAM SKY SKY 5
6 CASTELIJNS, Twan TEAM LOTTO NL-JUMBO TLJ 5
7 ANDERSEN, Soren Kragh TEAM SUNWEB SUN 4
8 GEOGHEGAN HART, Tao TEAM SKY SKY 3
9 KEISSE, Iljo QUICK STEP – FLOORS QST 3
10 POLITT, Nils TEAM KATUSHA ALPECIN KAT 2

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