Add Slovenia’s Matej Morohic, just 23, to the list of multi-stage race winners on the UCI World Tour after his win in the seven-stage, mostly flat Binck Bank Tour in Belgium and the Netherlands.
He took over after Stage 3 and nursed a tiny, three-second lead after Stage 5. But his 20th-place finish in the sixth stage – just 11 seconds behind the leaders – increased his edge to 30 seconds over Michael Mathews (AUS), as principal challenger Sean De Bie (BEL) fell all the way back to 109th.
Matthews gave it a go on the final, 215.6 km stage, winning the final sprint over Belgium’s Olympic road race champ Greg van Avermaet by a single second, but Mohoric was in close attendance in 13th place, just 13 seconds back and won the overall race with jut a five-second margin to spare.
Mohoric had won an individual stage in both the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a Espana, but nothing like a World Tour multi-stage race. Now he’s a champion. Summaries:
UCI World Tour/Binck Bank Tour
Belgium and Netherlands ~ 13-19 August 2018
(Full results here)
Stage 1 (177.3 km): 1. Fabio Jakobsen (NED), 4:01:00; 2. Marcel Kittel (GER), 4:01:00; 3. Caleb Ewan (AUS), 4:01:00; 4. Kris Halvorsen (NOR), 4:01:00; 5. Max Walscheid (GER), 4:01:00.
Stage 2 (12.7 km Time Trial): 1. Stefan Kung (SUI), 14:11; 2. Victor Camenaerts (BEL), 14:25; 3. Soren Kragh Andersen (DEN), 14:26; 4. Michael Matthews (AUS), 14:26; 5. Maximilian Schachmann (GER), 14:30.
Stage 3 (174.9 km): 1. Taco van der Hoorn (NED), 3:47:42; 2. Maxime Vantomme (BEL), 3:47:45; 3. Sean de Bie (BEL), 3:47:45; 4. Matej Mohoric (SLO), 3:47:45; 5. Jesper Asselman (NED), 3:48:17.
Stage 4 (165.5 km): 1. Jasper Stuyven (BEL), 3:44:46; 2. Ewan (AUS), 3:44:46; 3. Zdenek Stybar (CZE), 3:44:46; 4. Rudiger Selig (GER), 3:44:46; 5. Timothy Dupont (BEL), 3:44:46.
Stage 5 (204.4 km): 1. Magnus Cort (DEN), 4:39:50; 2. Julius van den Berg (NED), 4:39:50; 3. Alexis Gougeard (FRA), 4:39:50; 4. Jonas Rickaert (BEL), 4:40:19; 5. Ewan (AUS), 4:40:23.
Stage 6 (182.2 km): 1. Gregor Muhlberger (AUT), 4:05:10; 2. Tim Wellens (BEL), 4:05:13; 3. Stybar (CZE), 4:05:13; 4. Dylan van Baarle (NED), 4:05:13; 5. Schachmann (GER), 4:05:15.
Stage 7 (215.6 km): 1. Matthews (AUS), 4:38:36; 2. Greg van Avermaet (BEL), 4:38:37; 3. Stybar (CZE), 4:38:39; 4. Oliver Naesen (BEL), 4:38:39; 5. Schachmann (GER), 4:38:39.
Final Standings: 1. Matej Mohoric (SLO), 25:13:01; 2. Michael Matthews (AUS), +0:05; 3. Tim Wellens (BEL), +0:20; 4. Maximilian Schachmann (GER), +0:25; 5. Dylan van Baarle (NED), +0:34; 6. Greg van Avermaet (BEL), +0:37; 7. Soren Kragh Andersen (NOR), +0:39; 8. Gregor Muhlberger (AUT), +0:43; 9. Niki Terpstra (NED), +0:43; 10. Jasper Stuyven (BEL), +0:50.
