Impey takes the lead as Porte wins on Willunga Hill
Richie Porte (BMC Racing) attacked and rode away on the second ascent of Willunga Hill, while Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scot) took over the race lead
The Queen Stage would be the most important day of the Tour Down Under so far, and with the sprinters likely to take centre stage for tomorrow’s grand finale, if the GC riders wanted to take the win, they had to make their move today. Willunga Hill was where the decisive move would come, with the major climb of the day being ridden twice on this 151.5km stage, and with the finale taking place on the second ascent, to be in with a chance, riders would have to stay in touch on both occasions. After days of scorching heat, the weather was finally cooling – if only slightly – but this would give riders just that little bit extra, and that could make all the difference.
When the pivotal attack came on today’s Tour Down Under Queen Stage, BORA-hansgrohe’s Jay McCarthy put his cards on the table and went for glory. As his teammate, UCI World Champion, Peter Sagan, summed up after the race, “It's always better to try than do nothing”, and the Australian rider knew that stage 5 was where the race for the overall victory was going to come to life, and he turned himself inside out to stay in contention. While Jay was unable to stay with the eventual stage winner, he showed bravery, grit and determination in his efforts, while the team showed its strength in pulling together to bring both Jay and Peter to the foot of the day’s climbs in a position to contest the win.
VIDEO: 2018 Santos Tour Down Under Stage 5
2018 Santos Tour Down Under Stage 5 Top 10
1 Richie Porte (Aus) BMC Racing Team 3:42:22
2 Daryl Impey (RSA) Mitchelton-Scott 0:00:08
3 Tom Jelte Slagter (Ned) Dimension Data 0:00:10
4 Dries Devenyns (Bel) Quick-Step Floors
5 Egan Arley Bernal Gomez (Col) Team Sky
6 Gorka Izagirre Insausti (Spa) Bahrain-Merida
7 Diego Ulissi (Ita) UAE Team Emirates
8 Robert Gesink (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo 0:00:14
9 Jon Izagirre Insausti (Spa) Bahrain-Merida
10 Ruben Guerreiro (Por) Trek-Segafredo#
2018 Santos Tour Down Under GC after Stage 5
1 Daryl Impey (RSA) Mitchelton-Scott 18:02:15
2 Richie Porte (Aus) BMC Racing Team
3 Tom Jelte Slagter (Ned) Dimension Data 00:00:16
4 Diego Ulissi (Ita) UAE Team Emirates 0:00:20
5 Dries Devenyns (Bel) Quick-Step Floors
6 Egan Arley Bernal Gomez (Col) Team Sky
7 Gorka Izagirre Insausti (Spa) Bahrain-Merida
8 Robert Gesink (Ned) LottoNL-Jumbo 0:00:24
9 George Bennett (NZl) LottoNL-Jumbo
10 Jon Izagirre Insausti (Spa) Bahrain-Merida