“Storer was obviously the strongest today” – Romain Bardet content despite defeat on day two of the Tour of the Alps

Michael Storer of Tudor Pro Cycling Team claimed a massive victory on stage 2 of the Tour of the Alps, moving into the overall lead with a commanding performance.

The Australian now holds a lead of more than 40 seconds in the general classification following his dominant ride. Storer launched his move with just over 4km of racing left, and the gap was held at around 12 seconds until the final kilometre. Then, the gap exploded, with 41 seconds to Paul Seixas and Romain Bardet at the finish. With mountainous stages to come, Storer will take some beating, even for someone as talented as Bardet.

Romain Bardet continued his consistent start to the race, finishing third on the stage after placing fourth on Monday’s opening stage. The Frenchman, riding his final season as a professional before transitioning to gravel racing, once again showed strong form in the mountains.

"It was a solid day with five hours spent in the mountains," Bardet told Cyclism’Actu afterwards. "Halfway through the stage, the team took things in hand and did a great job to give us a chance to fight for the win. Storer was obviously the strongest today, but finishing alongside Max in the group just behind seems like a good result for us."