Tour De Yorkshire 2015 | Stage 2 Results
Author: Chris Maher, Pictures courtesy of: www.chrismaher.co.uk
Saturday 02nd May 2015 
B illed as the Sprinters Stage, Selby to York delivered that promise, with a thirty man bunch sprint along the Knavesmire.
With favourites, Marcel Kittel and Ben Swift out of contention. The opportunity to win stage two went all the way down to the line. Team Lotto Jumbo’s Moreno Hofland crossed the line narrowly in-front of IAM Cycling’s Matteo Pelucchi and Team Giant Alpecin’s Ramon Sinkeldam.
An early break containing eight riders mopped up the intermediate sprints and the KOM points.
By the time the leading bunch had entered the finishing circuit in York, they still had over two and a half minuets on the peloton, and it was still un-clear, if they could stay away till the end.
With a lap and a half to go, Madison Genesis’s Mark McNally and Team Giant Alpecin’s Bert de Backer had broke free of the leading group. Crossing the start/ finish line and bell lap, they were one minuet-fifteen up.
On the last lap, the remaining leaders were soon swallowed up. With under ten kilometres until the finish line, the final two escapees were caught eventually. All the signs of a big bunch sprint where showing.
De Backer stayed out front until the dying kilometres, Cofidis went for a long one. As the final straight approached, BMC tried one last attach. With one-hundred metres remaining, the bunch opened up across the road and the sprint finish as promised, burst into life!
Stage Result: Selby to York – 174 Kms, 3:57.58 Hrs, Ave Sp 43.87 Kmph.
1) Moreno Hofland Team Lotto Jumbo
2) Matteo Pelucchi IAM Cycling
3) Ramon Sinkeldam Team Giant Alpecin
4) Jean Pierre Drucker BMC
5) Dylan Groenewegen Roompot Oranje Peloton
6) André Looje Roompot Oranje Peloton
7) Russell Downing (GBR) Cult Energy Pro Cycling
8) Andreas Stauff MTN Qhubeka
9) Harry Tanfield (GBR) JLT Condor
10) Pieter Van Speybrouck Topsport Vlaanderen Baloise
11) Reinard Janse Van Rensburg MTN Qhubeka
12) Thomas Sprengers Topsport Vlaanderen Baloise
13) Greg Van Avermaet BMC
14) Chris Opie(GBR) One Pro Cycling
15) Ian Wilkinson (GBR) Team Raleigh GAC
16) Julien Simon Cofidis
17) Jonas Van Genechten IAM Cycling
18) Yanto Barker (GBR) One Pro Cycling
19) Steele Van Hoff NFTO
20) Samuel Sanchez BMC (All Same Time)
General Classification:
1) Lars Petter Nordhaug Team Sky
2) Samuel Sanchez BMC
3) Thomas Voeckler Europcar
4) Stephane Rossetto Cofidis
5) Philip Deignan Team Sky
6) Anthony Turgis Cofidis
7) Greg van Avermaet BMC
8) Erick Rowsell (GBR) Madison Genesis
9) Ben Hermans BMC
10) Richard Handley (GBR) JLT Condor
KOM:
Cote De North Newbald Mark McNally Madison Genesis
Cote De Finbar Mark McNally Madison Genesis
Overall KOM: Perrig Quemenneur Europcar
Points:
Wetwang Ivar Slik Roompot Oranje Peloton
York Ivar Slik Roompot Oranje Peloton
Finish York Moreno Hofland Team Lotto Jumbo
Overall Sprints: Lars Petter Nordhaug Team Sky
Most Aggressive: Mark McNally Madison Genesis
Official Website Tour De Yorkshire
Contributor to http://www.cyclingshorts.uk.com/
My photos are regularly updated on https://www.flickr.com/photos/23913935@N07/
Official photographer 2014 for http://teamjadan.com/
