In the final kilometres of the fourth stage in the Tour Down Under OPQS riders Jan Bakelants and Serge Pauwels attacked from the peloton. They opened up a small gap and seemed on their way to a surprise.
Several riders and groups tried to escape during the first kilometres of the stage. Carlos Verona and Jan Bakelants also tried their luck, but were caught quickly. A group of 5 riders got some room, but the lead group splitted quickly and only 2 riders remained in the lead. The peloton took control and reeled them in just before the second intermediate sprint.
Then the sprinter teams seemed in control for the resuming kilometres, but in the final kilometres some attacks were launched. The OPQS duo Pauwels and Bakelants tried their luck too and had a 6 seconds advantage with only 2 kilometres to go. For a while it seemed they were on their way to a big surprise, but with 600 metres they were caught. The group sprint was won by Andre Greipel (Lotto-Belisol). Bakelants was the first OPQS rider in 14th place.
