Caleb Ewan (Orica-Scott) won stage 1 of the Tour of Britain, edging out Edvald Boasson Hagen (Dimension Data) in a photo finish after a masterful leadout from Luka Mezgec. Elia Viviani (Sky) finished third, barely half a wheel's length further back.
A flat run-in saw the sprinters' teams battle it out, but despite Sky and Katusha-Alpecin being more visible it was Orica-Scott who got the timing right. The Australian outfit took control in the finale, with Mezgec and Ewan hitting the front just before a technical final kilometre, which included sharp turns, a narrow bridge and a cobbled finishing straight.
Boasson Hagen initially had the jump on Ewan, but the time spent in Mezgec's wheel benefitted the Australian, leaving him enough power to eke out the win.
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"When I crossed the line, I was pretty confident that I had got it," Ewan said in the post-race press conference. "It was pretty close but then after the line I saw all the cameras around Eddy and then I started doubting. When it's that close you never really know."
"It was a pretty tricky final because of the tight corner with about 500 metres to go, and then obviously with the cobblestones in the finish, so we definitely wanted to be on the front into the corner, and then have Luka take me to the 200 metre mark.
"I can't complain about the leadout; I just had to sit there and get taken through the really tricky parts."
How it unfolded
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