Will Clarke of Drapac has taken victory in the prologue of the Jayco Sun Herald Tour in Melbourne.
The opening of the 2016 Tour was a 2.1km stage around Melbourne's Federation Square and saw Pat Shaw take an early lead by finishing with a time of 2.41.1
On a wetish day, that time lasted until Robbie Tucket finished in 2.37.48 and then Will Clarke of Drapac set a time of 2:34:27 which was not to be beat.
"Pretty much same result as last year just beating Caleb by about a second. It was a nervous wait for me actually, starting 40-45 minutes before him ... and sitting up there,” Clarke is quoted as saying.
“I thought he’s [Ewan] good in the corners, he’s very fast so this course suits him as well.
“I am just stronger than last year I think so I think that’s what allowed me to go a little bit quicker," Clarke added of the difference between his 2015 and 2016 winning rides. "I guess I’d down Tour Down Under the previous years before this and maybe in ways it can help to have a race in your legs but I guess I was able to do more specific prologue work before this also which could have helped.
“It would be nice to hang onto the jersey for a day or two, he have to wait and see how the race plays out. It’s such a short prologue so the time gaps aren’t huge, its not like I am 10-20 seconds up on anyone," Clarke said. "Whoever basically wins tomorrow has a good chance of pulling on the leaders jersey. We’ll wait and see how the race is going, maybe put some guys up the road to defend our interest that way."
Result
| 1 | William Clarke Drapac | 0:02:34 | |
| 2 | Caleb Ewan Orica-GreenEdge | 0:00:01 | |
| 3 | Neil Van Der Ploeg Avanti IsoWhey Cycling Team | 0:00:02 | |
| 4 | Robbie Hucker Avanti IsoWhey Cycling Team | 0:00:03 | |
| 5 | Joseph CooperAvanti IsoWhey Cycling Team | 0:00:04 |
Of the British riders, Team Sky's Peter Kennaugh was 8th, Chris Lawless of JLT Condor was 13th, Luke Rowe of Team Sky was 18th with Chris Froome 26th.
Speaking about the stage, Froome said to his team's press office:"It was just under three minutes so it was a pretty short, intense sprint basically. "It wasn't too technical. There were a couple of corners but it was pretty narrow and twisty. It was definitely a good ride from Will (Clarke) there to repeat his victory and win by one second. It's impressive.
"The crowds here have been massive - the same kind of thing you'd expect at the Tour. Everyone cheering for all the riders - that's what we want to see. I'm looking forward to tomorrow and hopefully the road goes uphill a bit more!"