07/03/2023

Tirreno-Adriatico: Fabio Jakobsen wins incredibly fast stage 2 sprint

Soudal - Quick-Step have emerged victorious on stage 2 of Tirreno-Adriatico, as Fabio Jakobsen rode to a strong victory in the final sprint.

A day for the sprinters, it saw five riders go up the road early on. Roland Thalmann (Tudor Pro Cycling Team), Mirco Maestri and Davide Bais (EOLO - Kometa), Alessandro Iacchi and Stefano Gandin (Team Corratec). Maestri, Iacchi and Thalmann were the last survivors of a stage that saw a strong pace, but were eventually caught with 20 kilometers to go.

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With a small hilltop just inside the final 10 kilometers it was a tense approach with many teams trying to stay in the front. At no point did the race calm down, as tension only kept growing as the riders got closer and closer to the finale.

A mighty furious finish saw no leadout take over the front. Fernando Gaviria launched an early sprint and got a gap which seemed to be definitive. But as the slight uphill gradients bit some riders managed to come from behind, with Fabio Jakobsen taking the win on the line. An incredibly tight finish as the European Champion just barely managed to beat Jasper Philipsen, with Gaviria a very tight third place.