Soudal Quick-Step’s Frenchman continued his red-hot form by taking back-to-back victories.
Paul Magnier powered to his 12th success of the year at the CRO Race, retaining the red jersey and even extending his overall lead with four days to go. Paul, one of the most in-form riders of September, started the last month of the season doing what he does best, winning in a spectacular way after a hectic finale.
The second stage of the CRO Race was one of the shortest in the history of the event, after the weather forced the organisers to alter the route. Due to strong winds on the bridge at km 64.5, they decided to reduce the length of the parcours, which ended up being just 51km-long, finishing atop the third-category Jovici climb.
The hill averaged 2.2% over 8 kilometers, and Soudal Quick-Step made sure that Magnier was in a good position the entire time for the new finale. Around 300 meters from the line, the Frenchman shot from the pack on the right side of the road and quickly put a couple of bike lengths into the others for win number seven in his last eight race days.
“The stage was shorter and the finale completely different with this uphill kick, but the legs felt good and I remained calm despite the fact it was hectic out there, as everybody was really fresh. I was able to do a strong sprint and take another victory, which makes me happy. I would have never thought I’d reach twelve wins this year, but I have worked hard for this and I’m delighted to see the improvements I’ve made since joining the team. There are four more stages here and we’ll see what we can do and if we can take some more victories”, an elated Paul said.
Photo credit: ©Sport-IT
