Tirreno-Adriatico stage 4: Cummings solos to victory in Foligno

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Stephen Cummings (Dimension Data) went from team player to stage winner after a strong ride into Foligno on stage 4 of Tirreno-Adriatico. Cummings attacked his escape group inside the final three kilometres and soloed to the line to take victory ahead of Salvatore Puccio (Team Sky) and his teammate Natnael Berhane.

“We were trying to do a stage for Edvald Boasson Hagen, we thought that he was the best chance for today. He’s in super form, so I was there as the policeman but it came to 3km and normally I can do 3km alone. I tried to do that strategy. I don’t know if that was ok but it seemed to work out,” Cummings said before collecting his prize for stage winner.

“I was pretty confident and pretty aero on the bike. Everybody else had been pulling and I hadn’t been pulling. It was good having Edvald behind because it meant that I didn’t have to do any work. It was a great team performance and I was just lucky at the end.”

After chasing down several attacks in the final 20 kilometres to keep his teammate Edvald Boasson Hagen in contention, Cummings found himself in the race-winning move. It had been instigated by Matteo Montaguti (AG2R La Mondiale) at the foot of the final climb, and the Dimension Data rider quickly joined along with Puccio. With his teammate still behind, Cummings was able to sit on the bunch, refusing to budge despite insistence from Puccio.

The pace was high in the bunch and it took time for them to build any sort of advantage. Before they were too far up the road, three more riders joined them, and they were Berhane, Jan Bakelants (AG2R La Mondiale) and Daniel Moreno (Movistar). As Puccio did most of the work, Cummings laid in wait for the perfect moment.

A strong time triallist, Cummings knew that he could hold a quick pace over the three kilometres remaining. The 34-year-old was able to take advantage of the indecision behind, with nobody willing to step forward and bring him back. Cummings continued to build his advantage and would eventually cross the line 13 seconds ahead of the chasers, plenty of time to enjoy his celebration.

Zdenek Stybar (Etixx-QuickStep) finished in the main group and kept hold of his race lead ahead of Damiano Caruso (BMC Racing).

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How it happened

There was a lot of tension at the start of the fourth stage of Tirreno-Adriatico, with wind and rain predicted out on course. For the second stage running, Stybar would begin the day in the leader’s blue jersey, and Etixx-QuickStep would be drafted in to do most of the work on the front of the peloton.

At 222km, it would be the longest stage of the race and four riders made their escape early on. The fantastic four were Ricardo Vilela (Caja Rural), Valerio Conti (Lampre-Merida), Cesare Benedetti (Bora-Argon 18) and Francesco Bongiorno (Bardiani CSF) and they quickly built a lead of over five minutes. With a headwind to contend with, the peloton took it easy in the opening half of the stage, riding about 20 minutes behind the slowest predicted schedule.

The action didn’t pick up until the first climb of the day was in sight when Etixx-QuickStep and Tony Martin took huge chunks out of the lead. By the time they reached the finishing circuits and the first ascent of the Montefalco, it had dropped to below two minutes. Sensing the danger, Conti was the first of the escapees to break rank, charging away with three kilometres to the top of the Montefalco. Bongiorno was the only rider who could stick with him initially, but he too fell by the wayside.

Conti was left to forge on alone, taking the mountains points at the top. Behind him, several teams pitched in with help, including Andrey Amador of Movistar and Fabian Cancellara for Trek-Segafredo. The high pace saw most of the sprinters dropped pretty quickly, as the group dwindled drastically. Cancellara put on a monster turn on the run-into the final climb, which would eventually end Conti’s hopes close to the point he made his bid for freedom.

After Cancellara pulled off, the damage already done, the small, select group still contained the likes Peter Sagan (Tinkoff), Vincenzo Nibali (Astana), Michal Kwiatkowski (Team Sky), Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) and Boasson Hagen. Puccio brought the peloton over the top of the final climb before Montaguti launched his first of many attacks on the descent. In what would become a familiar sight, Puccio found his move shut down by Cummings.

There was little or no control in the bunch and attacks began flying from all quarters, Sagan even had one of his own, but that was deemed too dangerous. The key move was finally made with just five kilometres remaining, initiated by Montaguti and was eventually followed by Puccio and Cummings. The group swelled to six when Berhane, Bakelants and Moreno made it over.

Puccio ended up doing most of the work, with a little help from Montaguti. He expressed his frustrations with Cummings, who said thanks but no thanks, thinking about his teammate Boasson Hagen behind. However, the peloton didn’t come back to them, and Cummings decided to go it alone, knowing that he wouldn’t have the speed in a sprint. His move proved to be the right one, and he rode to the finish on his own.

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