Julian Alaphilippe won his first victory of the season in a sprint on the second stage of the Basque Tour de France on Tuesday.
After a few complicated weeks, he finally started his season. this tuesday, Julian Alaphilippe After a perfect sprint, he won the second stage of the Tour of the Basque Country. The Frenchman took advantage of a slightly bumpy final and the presence of his team-mate Remco Evenepol to claim his first win of the year ahead of compatriot Fabien Doubey (TotalEnergies).
Orientation is essential in the last few meters of this stage on the way to Viana. At this point, the Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team was perfect: they helped the peloton soak up the remaining breakout a kilometer from the finish line, before taking their leader to the front.Head on the handlebars, Evenepoel then just need to take Alaphilippe’s rainbow jersey Until the last few meters were steep, the French swallowed them with no problem.
Tough start to the season
The boxer has not raised his arms since winning his second world title in Belgium last September. Before that, he had a troublesome start to the year, Fall Strade Bianche Then didn’t play Milan-Sanremo due to bronchitis. He then opted to skip the Tour of Flanders to regain his footing in the Basque Country this week and why not get back to winning ways. A winning bet.
For the rest of the game, with four stages remaining until Saturday, roles should be reversed: Alaphilippe can make himself aEnepur, is currently second in the overall standings. The young Belgian is just ahead of Slovenian Primoz Roglic (Jumbo-Visma), who remains the leader after his first time-trial victory the day before.