Dan Martin attacks yellow jersey in all-out Paris-Nice final
Racing the only way he knows how, Dan Martin went all out in a bid to wrestle the Paris-Nice yellow jersey from Sergio Henao. The Colombian just held on and Alberto Contador jumped to 2nd overall. That pushed Dan Martin down one place to 3rd on the final general classification.
Dan Martin has taken one of the best stage race results of his career, claiming 3rd overall on Paris-Nice after the final stage saw some real aggression.
The Irishman riding for QuickStep attacked the yellow jersey Sergio Henao (Team Sky) in an effort to seize overall victory.
Alberto Contador (Trek-Segafredo) had started the day 2nd overall and attacked and broke clear on the penultimate climb.
With 50km remaining he managed to shake off both Dan Martin and Henao. And the Spaniard would go on to catch all of the early breakaway.
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He would gap Henao by one minute at one stage, but by the time the race descended from the top Col d'Eze some 15km into the finish in Nice it was down to 21 seconds.
And when early breakaway man Davide De La Cruz, Dan Martin’s team mate, bested Contador in the sprint for stage victory it added insult to injury.
It also meant Contador was robbed of the maximum time bonus of 10 seconds for the stage victory.
And in the end Henao hung on by just two seconds overall.
De La Cruz takes the stage win from Contador, who was the man of the final two stages.
With Contador having started the day just one second down on Dan Martin, he leapt over the Irishman into the runner-up position.
However, 3rd was still a fantastic result for Martin. And he can also be secure in the knowledge that when Henao was exposed, he attacked him and gave it his all.
He was chased by the others in the yellow jersey group at the time and recaptured.
Nicolas Roche (BMC) and Philip Deignan (Team Sky) both finished in a group 6:13 down.
Sam Bennett (Bora-hansgrohe) was not listed as a finisher, though his stage win midweek was a career-best result.
How Paris-Nice final unfolded
It was on the penultimate climb of the day, the Côte de Peille, that the early breakaway began attacking each other. And the same scenario was also played out in the yellow jersey group.
Contador was clearly intent on a glory or bust day and with 53km remaining to the finish he got the hostilities underway in the group of main favourites.
At first Contador pulled away with Jarlinson Pantano, with Dan Martin and Henao getting up to them.
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However, when Contador attacked from that group Martin went backwards, with only Henao able to hold on.
But soon Henao would slip off the back of Contador’s wheel when the Spaniard attacked again.
From that point, still on the penultimate climb and with 48km to the finish, the race became one of Contador catching the early escapees ahead. And behind Martin and Henao were trying to catch Contador.
Henao was put under extreme pressure but he just about hung on to take a badly needed win for crisis-hit Team Sky.
By the top of the Côte de Peille Contador had was almost onto the five riders still out front.
He was 40 seconds up on the yellow jersey and Dan Martin was a further 20 seconds back the road.
Going down the climb a lead group of 14 assembled around Contador, with Dan Martin joining with Henao, Simon Yates (Orica-Scott), Julian Alaphilippe and others in the chase.
The gap grew to 50 seconds but was trimmed by 10 seconds by the start of the final climb, the Col d'Eze.
Very soon the gap shot out again to almost one minute and with the lead group having swelled to 20 riders Contador’s pace setting quickly trimmed it to just three.
He was joined by the early breakaway men David De La Cruz (Quick-Step) and Marc Soler (Movistar).
In the yellow jersey group, after race leader Henao had been forced to chase on the front, Dan Martin attacked as did Richie Porte (BMC).
However, they were pegged back. Up front Soler led solo over the top of the climb, from Contador and De La Cruz.
And though the gap was one minute back to the yellow jersey at the top of the climb, it came down on the downhill run in to the finish in Nice.
At the finish the gap was just 21 seconds as De La Cruz beat Contador for the stage win and Henao hung onto his yellow jersey to claim outright victory.
Contador’s time gain meant he jumped over Dan Martin into 2nd and he lost the overall win by just two seconds.
He may have won but for his two breakaway companions refusing to help on the run-in.
And though he got away from them, De La Cruz got back to him with a last gasp effort.
Stage 8 Paris Nice 2017: Nice-Nice (115.5km)
1 David De La Cruz (Spa) Quick-Step Floors 2:48:53
2 Alberto Contador (Spa) Trek-Segafredo
3 Marc Soler (Spa) Movistar Team 0:00:05
4 Sonny Colbrelli (Ita) Bahrain-Merida 0:00:21
5 Julian Alaphilippe (Fra) Quick-Step Floors
6 Michael Matthews (Aus) Team Sunweb
7 Diego Ulissi (Ita) Team UAE Emirates
8 Gorka Izagirre (Spa) Movistar Team
9 Arnold Jeannesson (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept
10 Lilian Calmejane (Fra) Direct Energie
11 Nicolas Edet (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits
12 Sergio Henao (Col) Team Sky
13 Daniel Martin (Irl) Quick-Step Floors
14 Ilnur Zakarin (Rus) Katusha-Alpecin
15 Simon Yates (GBr) Orica-Scott
55 Nicolas Roche (Irl) BMC Racing Team 0:06:13
60 Philip Deignan (Irl) Team Sky 0:06:13
DNF Sam Bennett (Irl) Bora-Hansgrohe
Paris-Nice 2017 Final General Classification
1 Sergio Henao (Col) Team Sky 29:50:29
2 Alberto Contador (Spa) Trek-Segafredo 0:00:02
3 Daniel Martin (Irl) Quick-Step Floors 0:00:30
4 Gorka Izagirre (Spa) Movistar Team 0:00:01
5 Julian Alaphilippe (Fra) Quick-Step Floors 0:01:22
6 Ilnur Zakarin (Rus) Katusha-Alpecin 0:01:34
7 Jon Izaguirre (Spa) Bahrain-Merida 0:01:41
8 Warren Barguil (Fra) Team Sunweb 0:04:07
9 Simon Yates (GBr) Orica-Scott 0:04:39
10 Tony Gallopin (Fra) Lotto Soudal 0:09:14
11 Richie Porte (Aus) BMC Racing Team 0:14:26
12 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana Pro Team 0:18:07
13 Philippe Gilbert (Bel) Quick-Step Floors 0:19:33
14 Sam Oomen (Ned) Team Sunweb 0:20:08
15 Romain Hardy (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept 0:20:25
18 Nicolas Roche (Irl) BMC Racing Team 0:30:49
76 Philip Deignan (Irl) Team Sky 1:15:41
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