"It's getting better every day, but my top form is far from there" - Juan Ayuso impressed by his progress after second placed finish going close to stage win at the Tour de Romandie

Juan Ayuso continued his impressive return to competitive action at the Tour de Romandie, coming close to victory on stage two of the Tour de Romandie finishing second to Ethan Hayter in a reduced bunch sprint.

"All in all I did my best for the team, we can be happy with that. I suffered a little more yesterday after my injury, but today it went a lot better," the 20-year-old UAE Team Emirates starlet revealed in his post-stage interview, referring to his months-long battle with tendonitis. "It's getting better every day, but my top form is far from there. I had to suffer quite a bit to survive the climbs. That will come with time, I'm not worried about that."

Now up to fourth in the general classification, a good performance in tomorrow's individual time-trial could give Ayuso a chance at taking the overall lead. An incredible feat considering the fact this is his first race since last year's Vuelta a Espana.

“I could have positioned myself a little better on Ethan's wheel, but it was a big fight for that position," Ayuso says of the final sprint. "I had to come from behind and then Ethan had already flown. It was impossible to overtake him."