Tour of Turkey: Ulissi wins at Selcuk summit finish

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Diego Ulissi (UAE Team Emirates) seized control of the Presidential Tour of Turkey with a powerful surge to the top of the finishing climb in Selçuk. The Italian topped Jesper Hansen (Astana) to win the stage and take the race lead, with Daniel Martinez (Wilier Triestina) in third.

Ulissi leads the general classification by five seconds over Hansen, with Androni Giocattoli’s Fausto Masnada in third at 24 seconds.

Ulissi has had a strong run of form in the late season, winning the GP de Montreal and landing on the podium in the Memorial Marco Pantani last month, and his team showed full confidence in his chances on the 204.1km stage from Marmaris.

After reeling in the remnants of the day’s early breakaway, Ferit Can Samli (Turkey), Davide Ballerini (Androni Giocattoli), and Ludovic Robeet (WB Veranclassic Aquality Protect), UAE Team Emirates took control with CCC Polsat Polkowice, staging a full-on lead-out into the final climb.

As the ascent began, Astana and Androni-Giocattoli moved to the fore to set a brisk tempo, but when the climb began to really bite, Androni’s Andrea Vendrame put in a stinging attack with 4km to go. The 23-year-old did not get far, and Bora-Hansgrohe sent Leopold Konig across to foil the move. The Czech rider soon dropped Vandrame, but UAE Team Emirates still had multiple cards to play.

Darwin Atapuma set a furious pace, whittling down the chase group and reeling Konig back in. Then Przemyslaw Niemiec took over, and set such a pace that with 1.2km to go, there were less than a dozen riders left in front.

Martinez, who clearly bounced back from his dramatic crash on the Sormano in Il Lombardia, launched an attack that reduced the group even further to just five, with only his teammate Yonder Godoy, Ulissi, Hansen and Masnada able to follow.

The Androni rider put in a counter-attack, but it was an ill-advised move in light of Ulissi’s form. The Italian waited for Masnada to fade, let Martinez set the pace into the final few hundred metres, then as the finish line came into view, put in a vicious attack to take out the stage victory.

"The climb was suited to my skills, this is why the team worked so hard to control the stage and carry me to the last climb in the best possible circumstances," Ulissi said. "The rhythm on the climb was very fast and this led to a strong selection. I was feeling good and I managed to seal the deal on the work that my teammates had done.

"Tomorrow I will wear the classification leader's jersey; it would be great and gratifying to be able to wear it until the end of the race."

How it unfolded

With 204.1km and three mountains on tap in the journey from Marmaris to Selçuk, overnight leader Sam Bennett (Bora-Hansgrohe) was fully prepared to give up the blue jersey of race leader to those more adept at dashing up hills.

A short climb came immediately after the start in Marmaris, and the first two attackers shot out of the peloton almost immediately: Davide Ballerini (Androni Giocattoli) and Alessandro Tonelli (Bardiani CSF) were joined by Danilo Celano (Caja Rural - Seguros RGA) at the front. Soon, three riders came together in pursuit: Alberto Cecchin (Wilier Triestina), Ludovic Robeet (WB Veranclassic) and Ferit Can Samli (Turkey), and linked up with the leaders to make it six out front.

The opening salvos were focused on the category 1 ascent 35.5km into the stage. With 10 points on the line at the top, and red jersey holder Mirco Maestri left behind, the mountains jersey was up for grabs from the breakaway.

Celano won the dash to the top, becoming the virtual leader of the mountains classification by one point. The breakaway would need to stay clear for the second climb - a full 150km away - if he wanted to take that jersey.

Bora-Hansgrohe and UAE Team Emirates kept the attackers from gaining too much time, the gap’s maximum never got much above three minutes, before the Pro Continental teams took over in the closing 50km.

Bardiani, keen to bring Maestri back into the fray, worked with Wilier Triestina to reel in the attack before the final climb, then delivered Maestri to the lead at the second climb, a category 3 kicker with 14.5km to go. Celano wisely slotted in, taking second in the sprint to remain equal on points with Maestri and take the jersey with the tiebreaker.

"First of all the aim was to get in the breakaway. Then when I got into the break the goal was to go for the mountains. The first climb was quite tough but luckily I had good legs," Celano said.

"The leader from Bardiani was a lot fresher than me coming into the second last climb so I had to suffer a lot for that sprint. I was able to get second on that climb and the points I needed to get the jersey. The goal now will be to defend it."

The racing then shifted to the riders keen to take over the general classification with Ulissi, Hansen and Bora’s Gregor Mühlberger getting the full benefit of their teams’ support.

UAE Team Emirates and Astana had strength in numbers, with Niemiec and Atapuma supporting Ulissi and Andrey Zeits and Zhandos Bizhigitov setting the pace for Hansen.

Mühlberger was well positioned on the final climb, but when the gradients kicked up in the final kilometer, he was unable to match the accelerations of his rivals.

Ulissi calmly sat back as Martinez, Masnada and Godoy made their moves, marking Hansen, before bursting to the front with 300m to go to take out the victory.

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