The penultimate stage of the Tour of Turkey saw another hectic bunch sprint, where A.J. Hodeg took the win. After 45 hard kilometres of racing a group of five riders went up the road and formed the breakaway of the day. In the approach toward the finale, the peloton closed the gap and another bunch sprint was on the cards. BORA – hansgrohe started to form their lead-out for Sam Bennett for the slight uphill finish. The Irish sprinter was not well positioned and which took him out of podium contention, but a strong fourth place was enough to defend his sprint jersey.
Results
01 A.J. Hodeg 3:15:12
02 J. Degenkolb +0:00
03 N. Haas +0:00
04 S. Bennett +0:00
From the Finish Line
“Lukas, Jay and all the other guys did once again a fantastic job. In the finale, I chose the wrong side and as Degenkolb passed me, I wasn’t able to overtake him and was out in the wind for a long sprint. Therefore, it wasn’t possible to go for another win or podium. I want to try it tomorrow again and to secure my sprint jersey.” – Sam Bennett
“The team put on another a good performance, as they have the whole week here. The finale was slightly uphill and the wind played a role today. Sam gave his best, but in a bunch sprint, there are happen so many things happening in just a second. He kept his sprint jersey and we will try to bring it home tomorrow.” – Steffen Radochla, sports director
