Trek-Segafredo keep Contador safe on Stage 2
Trek-Segafredo displayed impeccable teamwork in Paris-Nice stage two, rebounding from a mostly cheerless race yesterday and rallied around Alberto Contador during the crosswinds, rain, and cold temperatures that plagued the peloton for a second straight day
While the team muscled Contador back into contention, John Degenkolb displayed his Classics form by riding with the lead group all race and sprinting to second place from a reduced peloton that arrived at the finish.
"Another super hard stage with wind and rain from the beginning," said Degenkolb. "I felt much better than yesterday, and from the beginning I was in a good position and placed in the first echelon. The team protected Alberto very well, and he came back to the first echelon.
"In the end, going into the sprint – I mean, it was not a normal sprint after a super hard stage like this and everybody's super empty and tired, and that is what I like the most – I still felt pretty strong. In the end, it's a disappointment to get second, but it shows my shape is in the right direction. I am still happy with the second place. It's the second race after a training period, and I am already on the podium again, and that's good to see."
John Degenkolb refound his legs, joining the elite front bunch of 22 riders that severed itself in the strong side winds in the first half of the 192.5-kilometer race, while Gregory Rast, Edward Theuns, Michael Gogl and Haimar Zubeldia were all with Alberto Contador in the second group.
The race threatened to play out to Sunday's tune, a melody Trek-Segafredo didn't want to hear again, and the determined teammates pulled like madmen to help close the nearly two-minute deficit. With under 60 kilometers to go, the two groups joined and the peloton numbered some 70 riders.
With Contador safely back in the fold, the focus turned to Degenkolb, who had a brilliant opportunity for the stage win from a bunch containing a lot of fatigued legs – a situation he thrives in.
Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrain Merida) opened the sprint early and Degenkolb jumped from behind. He was gaining fast but ran out of real-estate to overtake the Italian, who grabbed his first WorldTour win while Degenkolb settled for second.
It has been a day that we'll remember for a long time.
After another stressful race in crosswinds and rain, Contador arrived safely in the same time as the peloton.
"It has been an infernal day from the first moment, and everything was cut into a thousand groups," Contador said. "There have been some incredible nervous moments again. I was well placed, but lost contact and fell back to a group behind. The team worked very well, several teammates came from behind, and they made a high pace, and we were able to catch the group ahead.
"We saved the day without problems, but it was a pity that in the end, we could not achieve the victory with John. We must be happy because we saved a day of great danger with all the wind, cold and rain. It has been a day that we'll remember for a long time. The important thing now is to recover. We shall continue to take it day by day and see what can be done when my terrain arrives."
Jesús Hernández abandoned during the race after he had been fighting gastrointestinal symptoms related to the stomach flu.
2017 Paris-Nice Stage 2 Top 50 Results
1 Sonny Colbrelli (Ita) Bahrain-Merida 4:20:59
2 John Degenkolb (Ger) Trek-Segafredo
3 Arnaud Demare (Fra) FDJ
4 Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) Team LottoNl-Jumbo
5 Christophe Laporte (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits
6 Matti Breschel (Den) Astana Pro Team
7 Oliver Naesen (Bel) AG2R La Mondiale
8 André Greipel (Ger) Lotto Soudal
9 Alexander Kristoff (Nor) Katusha-Alpecin
10 Evaldas Siskevicius (Ltu) Delko Marseille Provence KTM
2017 Paris-Nice General Classification After Stage 2 Top 30
1 Arnaud Demare (Fra) FDJ 7:43:28
2 Julian Alaphilippe (Fra) Quick-Step Floors 0:00:06
3 Philippe Gilbert (Bel) Quick-Step Floors 0:00:17
4 Alexander Kristoff (Nor) Katusha-Alpecin 0:00:19
5 Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto Soudal
6 Romain Hardy (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept 0:00:21
7 Daniel Martin (Irl) Quick-Step Floors 0:00:23
8 Sergio Henao (Col) Team Sky
9 Rudy Molard (Fra) FDJ
10 Kristijan Koren (Slo) Cannondale-Drapac 0:00:31
11 Gorka Izagirre (Spa) Movistar Team 0:00:33
12 Marco Haller (Aut) Katusha-Alpecin 0:00:36
13 André Greipel (Ger) Lotto Soudal 0:00:50
14 Yves Lampaert (Bel) Quick-Step Floors 0:01:00
15 Ilnur Zakarin (Rus) Katusha-Alpecin 0:01:01
16 Jelle Wallays (Bel) Lotto Soudal 0:01:06
17 Warren Barguil (Fra) Team Sunweb 0:01:17
18 Davide Formolo (Ita) Cannondale-Drapac 0:01:18
19 Alberto Contador (Spa) Trek-Segafredo
20 Jon Izaguirre (Spa) Bahrain-Merida
21 Simon Yates (GBr) Orica-Scott
22 Marcel Kittel (Ger) Quick-Step Floors 0:01:31
23 Sven Erik Bystrøm (Nor) Katusha-Alpecin 0:02:11
24 Sam Bennett (Irl) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:02:17
25 Christian Knees (Ger) Team Sky 0:02:20
26 Luke Rowe (GBr) Team Sky 0:02:32
27 Steven Kruijswijk (Ned) Team LottoNl-Jumbo 0:02:42
28 Magnus Cort Nielsen (Den) Orica-Scott 0:03:10
29 Davide Cimolai (Ita) FDJ 0:03:23
30 Bram Tankink (Ned) Team LottoNl-Jumbo 0:04:10
VIDEO: 2017 Paris-Nice Stage 2 Highlights
Trek-Segafredo keep Contador safe on Stage 2 - Photo credit: ©Bettiniphoto