Marijn van den Berg (EF Training-Easypost) steamrolled from a diminished bunch dash to win the Trofeo Port d’Alcúdia on the second day of racing at Problem Mallorca. Ethan Vernon (Soudal-QuickStep) adopted in second and Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Circus-Wanty) took third.
The final kilometre was led by units of riders from EF Training-EasyPost, Intermarché-Circus-Wanty and Bora-Hansgrohe alongside the damp Balearic island roads. The 23-year-old, in his second 12 months with the US-based WorldTour workforce, timed his ultimate dash completely and scored his first victory since 2021.
The 158.6 km route was all in regards to the back-to-back categorised climbs of Coll Sa Batalla and Coll Femenia that arrange the ultimate 28.6km to the flat end in Alcúdia.
With 34.5km to go, on the method to the ultimate ascents, the breakaway duo of Julius van den Berg (EF Training-EasyPost) and Luis Ángel Maté (Euskaltel-Euskadi) continued to set the tempo till Nils Politt (Bora-Hansgroghe) created a niche on the entrance of the peloton on the respectable for a short solo lead.
On the damp roads to the end to Alcúdia, a diminished group introduced all of it again along with 7km to go to set the stage for a dash ultimate.
The way it unfolded
Assaults flew instantly because the flag dropped, with Maté the primary to make a dig and finally, after burning off a couple of riders, he discovered a collaborator within the day’s escape in Julius van den Berg.
They duo had lower than a minute on the peloton on the method to the one climb of the day, the Coll Sa Batalla when there was a crash within the bunch. 4 riders went down however it was Adrien Petit (Intermarché-Circus-Wanty) who appeared probably the most injured, wincing in ache and clutching his shoulder.
Patrick Konrad (Bora-Hansgrohe) attacked on the climb however solely served to spark the peloton to deliver again the 2 escapees simply over 1km earlier than the summit.
On the rolling plateau after the KOM, Neilson Powless (EF Training-EasyPost) attacked, drawing out Harrison Sweeny (Lotto-Dstny) and Remi Cavagna (Soudal-Quickstep), forcing such a concerted chase from Intermarché-Circus-Wanty that the peloton shattered. The neon yellow workforce hoped to distance some sprinters to profit 2022 winner Girmay.
The bunch quickly reeled within the escapees, and with low-hanging clouds and moist roads, the tough descent had riders on edge. One rider not fearful was Hugh Carthy (EF Training-EasyPost) who descended away with 26km to go however by no means received far.
He impressed Nils Politt (Bora-Hansgrohe) to additionally give it a go, with the German stunning the race moto and shouting it out of the way in which. The peloton was in tatters on the steepest part of the descent, with a couple of riders clipping off the entrance and plenty of extra unwilling to danger their early season in a 1.1-ranked race.
Maté was once more on the transfer, setting off solo in pursuit of Politt towards the decrease a part of the descent. However, with 20-some kilometres of a gentler grade earlier than the end and a stiff headwind, it might take a way more concerted effort to remain clear.
Soudal-Quickstep, Intermarché, and EF-EasyPost powered the chase because the street levelled, bringing again Maté however having a more durable time catching the German champion. He had 15 seconds in hand with 13km to go and the peloton strung out single file behind in full pursuit.
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