Sam Bennett has very much gotten his season back on track today at La Vuelta, where he roared back into top sprinting form to claim stage 2 victory.
The Bora-hansgrohe rider was best in the mass bunch sprint to the line today after 175.1km of racing from 's-Hertogenbosch to Utrecht. It was Bennett's second win of the season and comes at exactly the right time; early in a Grand Tour with six or seven likely chances for sprinters.
He won today ahead of Mads Pederson (Trek Segafredo) and Tim Merlier (Alpecin-Deceuninck), with the latter getting into a tussle for position and not handling the final approach well.
Bennett had suggested he may take some time to ride himself into the race, and that his best chances of a victory may come later in this Vuelta. However, he blew his own theory out of the water in spectacular fashion today, delivering a confidence-boosting win on the biggest stage.
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Bennett was delivered perfectly today by final lead-out man Danny van Poppel, after Ryan Mullen had worked a little earlier in the finale to bring them both into position.
While other teams, and their sprinters, were at the front for a prolonged period in the final 5km - in what was a very technical run-up - Van Poppel left it very late with Bennett. The duo only began a serious move to the very front of the peloton well inside the final kilometre.
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They seemed to have the power to easily hit the front despite the speed of the group. And when Van Poppel released Bennett for his sprint, the Irishman hit the front in the dead centre of the road and went on to take what was a confident win.
Bennett was on the front for a prolonged period and demonstrated the speed and staying power that had deserted him so far this year, though that challenging period is now behind him.
Lots more to come.
