Back-to-back stage wins in the Tour Down Under’s leaders jersey at Victor Harbor sees Simon Gerrans in a dominant position to claim a fourth overall win on Sunday.
A ten-second time bonus on the line for winning along with three seconds from winning the first of two intermediate sprint points also saw Gerrans extend his lead over Jay McCarthy (Tinkoff) to 14 seconds, and 26 seconds to defending champion Rohan Dennis (BMC).
A late split in the finale saw overall rivals Richie Porte (BMC), Michael Woods (Cannondale) and Dennis concede eight seconds to Gerrans, adding to what was already a successful day in the saddle.
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“I've increased my lead but I'll still have to be very attentive before Willunga Hill tomorrow. There's still a lot of work to be done,” Gerrans said after his win.
Saturday’s queen stage up Willunga Hill is the major obstacle in the path of Gerrans’ quest for victory but with his significant time buffer, the 35-year-old can play a defensive card on the three-kilometre climb. While Gerrans is in the enviable position of leading the race ahead of the penultimate stage, Orica-GreenEdge sports director Matt White believes the race is far from a foregone conclusion.
“Someone has to gap Gerro on Willunga to win,” said White. “It’s a 10-second bonus to win, so someone only has to gap him by four seconds, so it’s far from over.”
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