World Champion Shows Sprinting Prowess on Stage 4 of 2018 Santos Tour Down Under

Stage 4 of the 2018 Santos Tour Down Under started off from Norwood as the riders began their 128.2 kilometer journey to Uraidla.

Zak Dempster (Israel Cycling Academy) and Alex Porter (Bennelong SwissWellness) set the pace early, quick putting a cushion on the field on the way to the intermediate sprint in Birdwood.

Stage 1 winner Andre Greipel (Lotto Soudal) and Thomas De Gendt (Lotto Soudal) set off from the peloton attacking the gap held by Dempster and Porter, but were quickly reeled back in.

36 kilometers into the stage, on the sprint into Birdwood, Zak Dempster crossed the checkpoint ahead of Alex Porter and Stage 3 winner Elia Viviani (Quick Step Floors).

A pack of 30 riders attacked the Woods Hill Road climb to the KOM 30 kilometers from the finish.

Simon Gerrans (BMC) led the pack, as Richie Porte (BMC) put in an extra surge to beat the pack and take the KOM.

With 1 kilometer to go on the stage, a tight pack of 20 riders rushed towards the finish in Uraidla.

Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott) and Luis Leon Sanchez (Astana Pro Team) had the best position with 300 meters remaining, but Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) showed the pack his dominant sprinting capacity and blew past the rest of the field for a thrilling Stage 4 victory.

Impey and Sanchez ended up finishing second and third on the stage respectively, as Diego Ulissi (UAE Team Emirates) surged to take fourth.

Stage 5 will be the 2018 Tour Down Under's longest and penultimate stage. Riders will depart from McLaren Vale at 11:10 am local time, and cover 151.5 kilometers before finishing on Brookman Road in Willunga Hill, just outside of Adelaide city proper.


Stage 4 Top 10 Finishers

1st: Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe)
2nd: Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott)
3rd: Luis Leon Sanchez (Astana Pro Team)
4th: Diego Ulissi (UAE Team Emirates)
5th: Jay McCarthy (Bora-Hansgrohe)
6th: Dries Devenyns (Quick Step Floors)
7th: Domenico Pozzovivo (Bahrain-Merida)
8th: Rui Costa (UAE Team Emirates)
9th: Pierre Latour (AG2R-La Mondiale)
10th: Laurent Didier (Trek-Segafredo)