Wout van Aert "indicated in advance that he did not want to sprint" at Tirreno-Adriatico

The absence of Wout van Aert from the battle for the win on stage two of Tirreno-Adriatico was all part of the Belgian's plan as he instead the teams aim for overall victory, Jumbo-Visma have revealed.

"It was a nervous ride with a dangerous final. Wout had already indicated in advance that he did not want to sprint," said Jumbo-Visma's sports director Frans Maassen to the teams official website. "He wanted to focus on the classification men. The men did it perfectly and took the initiative at the crucial moments."

The stage was eventually won by Soudal - Quick-Step's Fabio Jakobsen with van Aert rolling in 151st, 1:29 down but having done his job successfully of keeping the likes of Primoz Roglic, Tiesj Benoot and Wilco Kelderman safe. According to Benoot it could be a similar story on stage three as Jumbo-Visma try to prioritise.

"With Wilco, Primoz and myself, we have several riders who can ride a good classification. That will also be necessary, because the level is very high here," says Benoot. "I myself look at how I am doing every day. With the classics just around the corner, I think I think it's not a disadvantage for me to go deep this week."