Tim Wellens pips Marc Hirschi to win a tough Stage and take the Race Lead

Sam Bennett now sits in fourth overall but retains the points Jersey

The fourth stage of the BinckBank Tour, an out-and-back race of 96.2 km in Houffalize in Wallonia, featured steep climbs to the Bois des Moines, Côte Saint Roch and Côte Achouffe, the latter being a 800m-long ascent with an average gradient of eight per cent that came with approximately 15km before the finish. With this type of terrain, it was not expected that the winner would come from a large group.

The peloton made its way towards Houffalize on wet roads and immediately after the start, a duo unsuccessfully tried their luck in a breakaway but were reeled back in not long afterwards. On the climb to the Côte Bois des Moines, the field split but Jay McCarthy and Lukas Pöstlberger were able to make the cut into a leading group of nine riders, which was joined soon afterwards by yet more riders.

With 30km remaining to the finish, Tim Wellens, Marc Hirschi and Laurens De Plus attacked and were able to put distance between them and the followers behind. The chasing group, which contained several favourites, was not willing to let the leaders escape, but the trio up front worked well together and the chasers were unable to catch up.

In the end, the win was fought out between these three riders. Marc Hirschi led out the sprint to the line, but Tim Wellens was able to overtake him over the last few meters to snatch the win from the Swiss rider. Lukas and Jay arrived at the finish line approximately two minutes in arrears of the stage winner.

Sam Bennett, who had been leading the general classification for the three days, had to relinquish the green jersey and now sits in fourth place in the general classification, but managed to hold on to his lead in the points classification.

VIDEO: 2019 BinckBank Tour Stage 4 Highlights

2019 BinckBank Tour Stage 4 Top 10

1 Tim Wellens (Bel) Lotto Soudal 2:20:41 
2 Marc Hirschi (Swi) Team Sunweb   
3 Laurens De Plus (Bel) Team Jumbo-Visma 0:00:05 
4 Ivan Garcia (Spa) Bahrain-Merida 0:00:23 
5 Oliver Naesen (Bel) AG2R La Mondiale   
6 Michael Valgren Andersen (Den) Dimension Data 0:00:26 
7 Mike Teunissen (Ned) Team Jumbo-Visma   
8 Søren Kragh Andersen (Den) Team Sunweb 0:00:33 
9 Dion Smith (NZl) Mitchelton-Scott   
10 Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) CCC Team  

2019 BinckBank Tour GC after Stage 4

1 Tim Wellens (Bel) Lotto Soudal 13:32:46 
2 Marc Hirschi (Swi) Team Sunweb 0:00:04 
3 Laurens De Plus (Bel) Team Jumbo-Visma 0:00:14 
4 Ivan Garcia (Spa) Bahrain-Merida 0:00:36 
5 Mike Teunissen (Ned) Team Jumbo-Visma 0:00:38 
6 Oliver Naesen (Bel) AG2R La Mondiale 0:00:39 
7 Michael Valgren Andersen (Den) Dimension Data 0:00:42 
8 Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) CCC Team 0:00:49 
9 Simon Clarke (Aus) EF Education First   
10 Søren Kragh Andersen (Den) Team Sunweb

 
Tag: EnecoTour
 
Aug 31 2021 - NEWS: Stefan Bissegger takes Tour of Benelux time trial and race lead
Aug 30 2021 - NEWS: Tim Merlier wins opening sprint in the mellay of the Benelux Tour
Aug 04 2021 - NEWS: Renewed Benelux Tour Starts on 30 August in Friesland
Oct 03 2020 - NEWS: Van der Poel wins BinckBank Tour after daring attack on final stage
Oct 02 2020 - NEWS: Team Sunweb's Søren Kragh Andersen wins BinckBank Tour TT
Oct 01 2020 - NEWS: Trek-Segafredo's Mads Pedersen wins Stage 3 of BinckBank Tour
Sep 29 2020 - NEWS: Jasper Philipsen wins opening stage of BinckBank Tour
Aug 18 2019 - NEWS: Laurens De Plus attacks on final stage to win BinckBank Tour
Aug 17 2019 - NEWS: Filippo Ganna wins Binck Bank time trial as Tim Wellens retains race lead
Aug 16 2019 - NEWS: Hodeg blasts to victory on Stage 5 of Binck Bank Tour
Aug 15 2019 - NEWS: Tim Wellens pips Marc Hirschi to win a tough Stage and take the Race Lead
Aug 14 2019 - NEWS: Hat-trick for Sam Bennett after photo finish at BinckBank Tour
Aug 13 2019 - NEWS: Sam Bennett doubles up with second stage win at the BinckBank Tour
Aug 12 2019 - NEWS: Sam Bennett wins grim opening stage at the Binck Bank Tour
Aug 10 2019 - NEWS: Van Avermaet to Lead CCC Team's Rider Roster at Binck Bank Tour