Alpecin-Deceuninck's Sjoerd Bax has been growing over the season, and today at the first race of the final Italian Autumn classics block, he's taken a surprising win out of power and tactics.
“I knew I was fast, so I trusted my sprint. I had Stefano Oldani behind me, so I could wait. I wanted to ride, but I couldn't. So I saved my legs for the sprint," Bax said after the finish. With an Elite group of eight riders alongside, the Dutchman could take advantage of his lack of work to have a strong kick at the finale, and benefited from the lack of a strong sprinter to take a win in the Italian race.
“I also surprise myself that I am winning from these names and taking my first pro win. It is unbelievable," he concluded. Bax beat Alejandro Valverde and Andrea Piccolo to the line, after he managed to keep up with the pace of the best in the day's climbs.
This was the first win in the 26-year old's career, and came against high-level competition. the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider had shown great form in the hilly races over the past month, however this victory came as a climax of a strong period - which he will hope to keep showing over the coming weeks.
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