“It’s a massive step forwards" - Luke Plapp delighted with progress shown at UAE Tour

Now in his third year at the INEOS Grenadiers, Luke Plapp showed the clearest sign yet of his potential with a second-place finish in the general classification of the UAE Tour and the young Aussie is delighted with his progress.

“It’s a massive step forwards. That was a time trial for me from bottom to top, I had to pace it as well as I could, I couldn’t have gone any harder," the 22-year-old said following the conclusion of the final stage, won by UAE Team Emirates' Adam Yates. “To be honest, I think Yatesy was unbeatable today, I don’t think anybody in the world could have come close to him. So it was a great day."

Yates's win atop Jebel Hafeet actually brought the Brit agonisingly close to pushing Plapp down to third place on the GC. " I’m really glad I held onto second – just, by about one second, I think it was in the end. So I’m as stoked as I can be," said Plapp. “Like you saw, every second mattered and that showed you the importance of those bonus sprint seconds I got on the first day. That was the difference between second and third on the podium.”

“Mentally I was prepared for that, but I knew I didn’t want to go in too deep. I got sucked in and probably did hold that wheel for a bit too long," he continues. "I think since last year I always wanted to target this race. So it’s been great to see that happen."