Our rider ended the season by winning his fifth bunch sprint at the last World Tour race of the year.
Paul Magnier continued to write history at the Tour of Guangxi, where he also captured the last stage of the event to become the only rider with five victories this year in a World Tour race. It was a jaw-dropping performance in China from the 21-year-old, who joined Tom Boonen and Mark Cavendish as the only riders in the history of Soudal Quick-Step to have won at least 19 races for the team in a single season.
The Frenchman, who since mid-September has gone on an almost unstoppable winning romp, took home also the points jersey – the third of this kind of his career, after the ones he got at the Okolo Slovenska and the CRO Race, in the last four weeks.
Nanning welcomed the peloton on Sunday with a tricky circuit for the final stage of the week, and it was on the last lap that the bunch split, once they hit the punishing gradients of a 1.3km climb that came with 20 kilometers to go. Magnier found himself in the second chasing group, but thanks to a stellar effort of his Soudal Quick-Step teammates, he made it back inside the final ten kilometers and went on to prevail again in the sprint.
“We came here with a lot of ambition, as we wanted to do a good race, but we didn’t expect to have this fantastic run. The team did a really great job and I had a strong form in the last two months, but I didn’t think it was possible to take five stages, especially as sprinting on these wide roads it’s different from what I am used to. Once I got my first victory, I was more relaxed and each win that came from that moment on was a bonus.”
“It’s been an unforgettable week for us in China and I would like to return here one day, maybe even next year. The way I ended my season augurs well for the next one, when I hope to continue improving and win some important races for Soudal Quick-Step”, said the first Frenchman in almost three decades to win 19 races in a season.
Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele / Getty Images
