The Tour of Britain peloton reached the halfway point of the race on Thursday. In Ampthill, a third sprint in as many stages concluded the day after 123 kilometres. Matthew Brennan claimed the win while Matt Walls finished just outside the top-10. Starting Friday, Romain Grégoire and his teammates will tackle a hillier terrain.
A final opportunity was up for grabs for the sprinters taking part in the Tour of Britain on Thursday. From Milton Keynes to Ampthill, a relatively flat route was once again on the menu, and a bunch sprint was expected. “The start was still fast due to the rain and a small tailwind,” reported Jérôme Gannat. “In the end, four riders broke away at kilometre 12, but with the stage being quite short and the wind quite favourable, Visma-Lease a Bike didn’t leave much of a room to the breakaway. It was a fast day eventually”. After getting a maximum lead of 1’30, the fugitives were caught eleven kilometres from the finish, due to some attacks in the peloton. “On the way to Ampthill, there was a bit of action,” confirmed Jérôme. “Remco Evenepoel attacked in a small group, but everything was quickly back together.” Entering the final ten kilometres, a complete peloton therefore headed towards the sprint.
“A new race begins,” Jérôme Gannat
“The final was quite technical; the goal was to position Matt for the sprint, and that’s what Olivier did very well at first,” added Jérôme. “He was at the front of the pack in the final, but with two kilometres to go, things got complicated. In a straight, slightly uphill road, some riders came back from behind and Matt was beyond tenth place before the last kilometre. Then, the sprint was a little more difficult than the last few days because it was on a false flat.” Within a very stretched out peloton, the British rider didn’t manage to move back up and had to settle for thirteenth place. “We could have hoped for a little better but given the field, he’s pretty much where he belongs,” Jérôme said. Matthew Brennan won the day, Romain Grégoire secured his place in the pack. “We’re already halfway through the Tour of Britain, and we’re changing profile starting tomorrow, even if we’re not talking about mountains,” Jérôme added. “The goal was not to lose time in these sprint stages, that was done, and now a new race begins. We will focus on Romain for finishes that suit him well.” On Friday, the fourth stage will conclude with a 900-metre hill averaging 7.5%.
