Multiple podium results in Croatia

Team BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS is participating in the Cro Race stage race, sending a line-up of mostly young riders. Throughout the first four stages, the team rode aggressively, and in the Queen’s stage, Edoardo Zambanini missed out narrowly on the stage win, finishing in 2nd.

The six stages of the 9th Cro Race offer quite some variety and spectacular landscapes. While the Queen’s stage featured an aggregate of 3000 meters of ascending and the demanding Poklon climb and the finale of the 3rd stage was peppered with steep ramps, the sprint specialists got two opportunities to shine in the two opening stages. Due to the hilly terrain and strong winds, they had to be on their toes, however, if they wanted to have a say in the sprint for the stage wins. Team BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS sent Edoardo Zambanini as its GC captain and Alberto Bruttomesso and Fred Wright as its options for sprints. These three riders could rely on the support of Nicolo Buratti, Kamil Gradek, Robert Stannard and Fran Miholjevic, with the latter riding on home turf.

The first two stages were made for the fast men in the peloton, and Team BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS was in the thick of the action right away. On the first day, Alberto Bruttomesso sprinted to 3rd place against an impressive line-up of sprinters, securing the white jersey as the best young rider. On the next day, the team set a hard pace in the finale, and this time Nicolo Buratti tried his hand in the sprint, crossing the finish line in 4th. With Edoardo Zambanini in 7th, another rider of the team finished within the top 10. The third stage had to be cut short due to strong gusts of wind, and since the roads were wet the times for the overall standings were taken before entering the tricky local circuit. On this day, the riders of the team were not in contention for a top 10 result, let alone the stage win.

One day later Team BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS was back to racing aggressively in the Queen’s stage: Robert Stannard was part of the early six-rider breakaway that managed to build a lead of 3min30 on its way to the foot of the Poklon climb. From there Stannard was one of the strongest attackers and resisted the chasing efforts of the group of the small group of favourites. But he and one remaining companion from the breakaway were brought back before the race entered the local loop in Labin with its steep cobbled climb to the finish line. After a series of attacks had been neutralised, both Fred Wright and Edoardo Zambanini accelerated hard on the final kilometre. For a moment Zambanini seemed to be on his way to a stage win, but Tobias Lund Andresen managed to overtake him on the last meters. Still Zambanini crossed the finish line in 2nd, moving up to 3rd on GC. Three seconds later, Fred Wright crossed the finish line in 4th.

The final two stages of the Cro Race are likely to be decided in bunch sprints again. For this reason, the GC is unlikely to see massive changes from here, and a podium result on GC is very likely - which sports director Borut Bozic had defined as a goal before the race started. Today, Team BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS is also competing at the Italian one-day race Giro Dell’Emilia. With Damiano Caruso, Wout Poels and Antonio Tiberi, three riders of the team are in contention for a good result in this race. They can rely on the support of Nikias Arndt, Andrea Pasqualon, Torstein Traeen and Vlad Van Mechelen. Last but not least, Matevz Govekar and reigning Gravel World champion Matej Mohoric will be competing on Sunday at the 3rd UCI Gravel World Championships held in Leuven, Belgium. So cycling fans are treated to a lot of races in the next two days.

RESULTS:
9TH CRO RACE, STAGE 4: KRK - LABIN, 160.5KM
1. Tobias Lund Andresen, DEN, in 3:58.38 hours
2. Edoardo Zambanini, ITA/TEAM BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS, st
3. Odd Christian Eiking, NOR, + 0.03

STAGE 1: VODICE - SINJ, 162.5KM
1. Alexander Kristoff, NOR, in 3:53.02 hours
2. Giovanni Lonardi, ITA, st
3. Alberto Bruttomesso, ITA/TEAM BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS, st

OVERALL STANDINGS AFTER 4 OF 6 STAGES:
1. Brandon McNulty, USA, in 11:55.19 hours
2. Tobias Lund Andresen, DEN, + 0.25
3. Edoardo Zambanini, ITA/TEAM BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS, + 0.31
4. Fred Wright, GBR/TEAM BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS, + 0.33

Photos: Sprint Cycling Agency