Bora-Hansgrohe rider leads general classification heading into the mountains
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Peter Sagan in yellow at Tour de Suisse(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Peter Sagan in yellow at Tour de Suisse(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Elia Viviani beats Peter Sagan to the line at the end of stage 5 at Tour de Suisse(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) wins stage 3 at the Tour de Suisse(Image credit: Getty Images)
Peter Sagan in yellow during stage 5 at Tour de Suisse(Image credit: Getty Images)
Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) is satisfied with one stage victory and three podium finishes achieved so far at this year's Tour de Suisse. The three-time world champion is leading the overall race after placing second on stage 5, but as the race heads into the mountains, he doesn't expect there to be any other opportunities for the sprinters. Nonetheless, his performances are a good indication of his rising form heading into the Tour de France on July 6.
"Today was the last stage of this year's Tour de Suisse with a finish for the sprinters and we would have liked to win it," said Sagan, who placed second to Italian champion Elia Viviani in Einsiedeln.
Deceuninck-QuickStep led Viviani into the final corner and Sagan was positioned on his wheel. When the Italian kicked for the finish line along the uphill and cobbled final few hundred metres, however, Sagan had no response. Viviani crossed the line with his second consecutive stage win followed by Sagan and then the rest of the sprinters, with Jasper Stuyven (Trek-Segafredo) taking third.
"Once again, I'd like to thank all my teammates for the dedication and effort they put to control the race, protect me and place me for the sprint," Sagan said. "I was right behind Viviani in the last left corner, but he managed to stay ahead of me until the finish line.
"I think I can be satisfied with what I achieved so far in this Tour de Suisse and with the performance of our team."
Sagan is leading the overall classification by 14 seconds ahead of Michael Matthews (Team Sunweb) and by 21 seconds ahead of Kasper Asgreen (Deceuninck-QuickStep), but that is expected to change as the race heads into the mountains.
Sagan's early season was plagued by illness and he has secured only two other stage victories this season so far at the Santos Tour Down Under in January and the Tour of California in May.
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His stage 3 victory in Murten at the Tour de Suisse – along with three podiums and his current leads the overall and the points classifications – will all be welcomed performances ahead of the Tour de France, where he will be focussed on winning a seventh green jersey.
