The 2019 edition of the Tour Down Under came alive thanks to Patrick Bevin's aggression and defending champion Daryl Impey's experience, and it soon became clear that it was those two riders who were most likely to beat the mountain men – Richie Porte, Wout Poels, Michael Woods – at their own game with the climb of Corkscrew back on the menu for stage 4 and Willunga Hill providing the race's climax on stage 6, along with a more-than-lumpy stage 3 – with Peter Sagan eventually flattening the latter.
While Sagan's emergence as the winner of a stage that had been billed beforehand by some as one of the toughest ever to grace the race seemed unlikely, with the stiflingly hot weather potentially playing a part in preventing the peloton from exploding quite as much as it otherwise might have done, there was no denying Bevin and Impey's contributions to a race that really should, on paper, have gone the climbers' way.
Bevin might have held his lead all the way to the end had it not been for his crash on stage 5, and while Porte attempted to pull the race apart with his attack on Willunga Hill on the last stage, it was Impey who came out on top to take his second overall win in as many years.
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Here, then, are Cyclingnews' five conclusions from this year's race.
Bevin's a boxing fan
Absolutely central to the race was Patrick 'Paddy' Bevin's emergence as a genuine contender for this year's Tour Down Under title. He might have won it, too, were it not for his crash on stage 5, which, despite his injuries not being overly serious, prevented him from being at his best for the final stage, leaving him unable to defend his ochre leader's jersey.
After the New Zealander's CCC teammate Jakub Mareczko had finished third to winner Elia Viviani (Deceuninck-QuickStep) on the opening stage to Port Adelaide, you could have been forgiven for thinking – as many did, including the team, initially – that the bright orange jersey that emerged from the mêlée to win stage 2 in Angaston was Mareczko going two places better.
Ewan doesn't like losing
Philipsen has a fabulous future ahead of him
Mitchelton are going to miss Mat Hayman
Can anyone stop Porte from reaching seventh heaven on Willunga?
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
via Cyclingnews Latest Interviews and Features http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/5-conclusions-from-the-2019-tour-down-under
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