Tour de Pologne stage 2: Matej Mohorič sprints to uphill success

Matej Mohorič (Bahrain Victorious) continued his fine run of form to win stage 2 of the Tour de Pologne, batting away strong competition from João Almeida ( UAE Team Emirates) to ride into the leader’s jersey on the longest and most arduous stage of this year’s race.

Defined by a pair of category 2 climbs that preceded the final test, stage 2 extended for over 200km and came to a conclusion on the steep uphill slopes to Karpacz. The final climb was awarded category 1 status and stood at 3.7km in length with an average gradient of 6.9%. The toughest test for those wanting to win the stage fell within the final 1.6km, which averaged 9.5% and saw a flurry of late attacks from Rafał Majka (UAE Team Emirates) and Lennert van Eetvelt (Lotto Dstny).

Prior to the final climbs, Sam Brand (Team Novo Nordisk), Lorenzo Milesi (dsm-firmenich) and Jacopo Mosca (Lidl-Trek) had escaped from the peloton and established a 10-minute gap over the chasers, but their hopes were dashed by the work of Ineos Grenadiers behind. Led by Geraint Thomas – who is building his form for La Vuelta a España – the British team set a high pace throughout the afternoon which caught the three-man move and reduced the size of the peloton to under 40 riders by the final climb.

Ineos Grenadiers would not be the beneficiaries of their hard work, however, with Majka and Van Eetvelt the riders to take the initiative in the closing kilometres. The pair briefly looked as though they might contest the win, but a small group bridged across led by Mohorič’s teammate, Damiano Caruso.

Nevertheless, the acceleration of Almeida was not enough to disrupt Bahrain Victorious’ masterplan, with Mohorič rounding the Portuguese rider and taking the stage victory, as Michał Kwiatkowski (Ineos Grenadiers) led the remaining contenders home in third place. Mohorič now takes a four-second lead over Almeida heading into stage 3.