Abu Dhabi Tour 2018, Bauhaus takes the third! Kittel finishes in second
Phil Bauhaus (Sunweb) wins the third stage of Abu Dhabi Tour 2018.- The German youngster takes the spoils on stage 3 of the Abu Dhabi Tour 2018 and gets his first seasonal success. Bauhaus takes the sprint over Marcel Kittel (Katusha-Alpecin), thanks to whose terrific comeback he has almost taken the stage victory. Pascal Ackermann (Bora-hansgrohe) completes a podium all made of German riders whereas in fourth finishes the leader Elia Viviani (Quick Step Floors) and in fifth Caleb Ewan (Mirchelton-Scott) whose team, together with Quick Step Floors, have headed the peloton over the last kilometer of racing. Elia Viviani keeps the overall lead of the Abu Dhabi Tour 2018.
Even today the breakaway opens a gap over the peloton but the attempt promoted by Marco Maronese (Bardiani-CSF), Sergei Firsanov (Gazprom-Rusvelo), Pierre Rolland (EF Education First-Drapac) and Samuel Brand (Team Novo Nordisk), after having extended its lead to 2’20”, is chased by the pack with 53 kilometers remaining from 133. Only Maronese made his mark by winning the first intermediate sprint of the day.The second bonus sprint is taken by Elia Viviani, who widens his gap to 3” over overall runner-up Alexander Kristoff.
As soon as the group passes through Masdar City the situation springs into life. Thanks to the presence of a crosswind, EF-Drapac, Astana and Quick-Step Floors in first and then several other teams puts in a concerted effort on the front. In this manner the bunch splits into two smaller ones. Throughout the chaos, Alexander Kristoff falls down in a roundabout and reels in the peloton only thanks to the help of a teammate and he seems to haven’t suffered any damage.
With 41 kilometers remaining the situation calms down. The second group chases the leaders and th peloton returns all together. Quick Step Floors, Movistar and EF-Drapac manage the pace in the head of the race, an effort joined soon after also by BMC Racing, Ag2r La Mondiale and Astana. Not unlike the last few stages Knox (Quick Step Floors) leads the bunch for several kilometers and then cedes the lead to EF-Drapac and Movistar.
UAE Team Emirates, Lotto Nl-Jumbo and Mitchelton-Scott manage to do a pull in the front, followed by Sunweb and Quick Step Floors. Movistar leads the group until the flamme rouge, under which Viviani’s and Ewan’s teams take control of the pack. The last three hundred meters are very chaotic and there is not one train prevailing on the others so several sprinters are approaching the finish solo. From the confusion Phil Bauhaus surges to the fore and wins over Marcel Kittel, who has lost this stage only after the panel of judges had consulted with the photofinish.
Abu Dhabi Tour 2018 Stage 3 Results
1 BAUHAUS Phil Team Sunweb 3:02:55
2 KITTEL Marcel Team Katusha – Alpecin
3 ACKERMANN Pascal BORA – hansgrohe
4 VIVIANI Elia Quick-Step Floors
5 EWAN Caleb Mitchelton-Scott
6 GREIPEL André Lotto Soudal
7 BARBIER Rudy AG2R La Mondiale
8 KRISTOFF Alexander UAE-Team Emirates
9 VAN POPPEL Danny Team LottoNL-Jumbo
10 GUARDINI Andrea Bardiani – CSF
Abu Dhabi Tour 2018 Overall Classification
1 VIVIANI Elia Quick Step Floors