Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team rider Tony Martin did an outstanding job leading out Michal Kwiatkowski approaching the final 900 meters of the 210km Tirreno-Adriatico Stage 3 on Friday.
His effort was so strong, he blew up the entire field behind him as riders crossed the finish line in groups with time gaps between each other. Tony's effort followed a strong pull on the front by teammate Matteo Trentin. The result was chaos for the rest of the peloton. The final 900 meters averaged 5% in gradient, with a max ramp of 11%. Kwiatkowski earned a 2nd place finish behind stage winner Peter Sagan (Cannondale ProCycling), as Philippe Gilbert (BMC Racing Team) was the first to launch the sprint, but lost his power in the final meters. Simon Clarke (ORICA-GreenEDGE) finished 3rd, and Gilbert 4th.
Kwiatkowski kept the Maglia Azzura (blue jersey) with OPQS for another day, taking over the race lead from Mark Cavendish. Cavendish wore the jersey for two stages following the OPQS TTT victory. Rigoberto Uran moved up to 2nd in the GC.
OPQS looks next to 244km Stage 4. This stage will probably be crucial for the GC, as there is plenty of climbing. The final 4.65km is a climb averaging 6.4 percent in gradient. There is aso a 10% ramp around the point of the final kilometer.
"You can see, even in yesterday's race that in the end everyone was nervous," Kwiatkowski said. "Everyone wants to stay near the front for the GC or the sprint. Luckily I really had so much support today from my teammates. I'm really thankful that I could stay safe because of them, especially seeing the crashes like there were yesterday. As for my performance today, if you want to do well, you have to believe you can win. I finished 4th last year in the GC. This year we are motivated, we have a good lineup, and we had a good start of the race. So, why not go for maybe a stage win and the GC lead for the team once again on a day like today? Matteo Trentin and Tony Martin did a great job putting me into position. I wasn't able to get the victory, but OK, now I am in the Maglia Azzurra. I know the hardest stages are still in front of us and it is just beginning. But, we'll do our best. Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) is being always kept near the front with the support of his team, and Sky is always on the front as well, so we'll see what will happen between us and our competitors tomorrow."