ATOC 3: Alaphilippe Snuffs Stetina

by editors on May 17, 2016

(Click here for full Stage 3 photo gallery)

It really looked like Trek – Segafredo’s Peter Stetina was on his way to his first pro tour win (really?) until stage 3’s last kilometer in the Amgen Tour of California when Etixx-Quickstep’s Julian Alaphilippe (the guy who lost the GC tour in 2015 to Peter Sagan by three seconds) turned on the afterburners and blasted to the line for the win.

“Today was really hard, everyone waiting the last climb for the big fight, so I was a little bit nervous we arrived here [at the final climb]”, said Alaphilippe. “I wanted to wait until the last moment because I don’t know my condition after the break, so I’m really, really happy to win today.”

It’s all on the video. Follow the jump for stage and GC results.

JULIAN ALAPHILIPPE CLAIMS YELLOW JERSEY AND QUEEN STAGE AT THE AMGEN TOUR OF CALIFORNIA FOR SECOND YEAR RUNNING

Longest Ride of the 8-day Stage Race on Tap Tomorrow with 133.6-mile Route from Morro Bay to Monterey County’s Mazda Laguna Seca Raceway

SANTA BARBARA, CALIF. (May 17, 2016) – The leader jersey changed hands for the third time in three days at the 2016 Amgen Tour of California, with Etixx – Quick-Step’s Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) clutching the Queen Stage victory with a determined push up the final steeply sloped meters of Gibraltar Road in Santa Barbara County. The 23 year-old French rider who won last year’s Mount Baldy stage and placed second overall, just three seconds from top finisher Peter Sagan (Tinkoff), has clearly found California climbs to his liking.

“Today was really hard, everyone waiting the last climb for the big fight, so I was a little bit nervous we arrived here [at the final climb]”, said Alaphilippe. “I wanted to wait until the last moment because I don’t know my condition after the break, so I’m really, really happy to win today.”

Soon after the peloton of 144 took off from Thousand Oaks, home to title sponsor Amgen, a breakaway group of seven emerged. Nearly four hours and 95 miles later, that group dwindled to two Americans still out front on the approach to Gibraltar: Axeon Hagens Berman’s 21 year-old Greg Daniel (Denver, Colo.) and UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling’s Tanner Putt (Boulder, Colo.). Daniel attacked for a solo stint heading into the infamous 7.5-mile climb up Gibraltar Road, earning the Breakaway from Cancer® Most Courageous Rider Jersey today.

The chase group was pulled up the mountain by Cannondale Pro Cycling Team in support of Lawson Craddock (USA), with BMC Racing Team for Brent Bookwalter (USA) and Alaphilippe also within the pack of 20+ riders.

Two miles into the climb, the youngest rider in the peloton, Axeon Hagens Berman’s Neilson Powless (age 19) from Roseville, Calif. took the lead, creating a gap that grew to 15 and then 30 seconds with less than three miles to ride.

“On the final climb I felt really good. I was in the top three riders getting into the climb. After maybe 2K [kilometers] on the climb I looked back and noticed that there was a really large gap,” said Powless. “I just decided to keep it steady and see how long I could go, and it turned out to be a really successful ride, and gave me a lot of confidence just to know that I can climb like that, because in the past I haven’t seen myself as a top, top climber. So, yeah, I have a lot of confidence going into the next couple days.”

Strong climbers Lachlan Morton (AUS) of San Diego-based Jelly Belly p/b Maxxis and Peter Stetina (USA) of Trek – Segafredo made a move to catch Powless with 2.7 miles left. Stetina, who is coming back from a severe leg injury, soon escaped to a solo lead and hung on through the 10 percent average grade of the final mile until Alaphilippe attacked in the last quarter-mile, overtaking Stetina and also the Amgen Race Leader Jersey with his win today. Stetina, who resides in two of this year’s Host Cities – Santa Rosa and Lake Tahoe – finished the stage in second place, followed by George Bennett (NZL) of Team Lotto NL – Jumbo in third and Santa Rosa-based BMC Racing Team’s Brent Bookwalter (USA) in fourth. After his tremendous effort, Powless ended the day in fifth place.

Rally Cycling’s Evan Huffman (Elk Grove, Calif.), who took second place on Stage 2 yesterday, joined the breakaway to gather KOM points on the first three categorized climbs of the day to retain the Lexus King of the Mountain (KOM) Jersey.

A crash at the bottom of Gibraltar Road today took Team Sky’s Peter Kennaugh (GBR), a favorite for today’s stage, out of the race with a suspected broken collarbone.

Stage 3 Podium
1. Julian Alaphilippe (FRA), Etixx – Quick-Step Pro Cycling Team (BEL)
2. Peter Stetina (USA), Trek – Segafredo (USA)
3. George Bennett (NZL) of Team Lotto NL – Jumbo (NED)

Stage 3 Jersey Winners
Amgen Leader Jersey – Julian Alaphilippe (FRA), Etixx – Quick-Step Pro Cycling Team (BEL)
Lexus King of the Mountain (KOM) Jersey – Evan Huffman (USA), Rally Cycling Team (USA)
Visit California Sprint Jersey – Peter Sagan (SVK), Tinkoff (RUS)
SRAM Best Young Rider Jersey – Neilson Powless (USA), Axeon Hagens Berman Cycling Team (USA)
Breakaway from Cancer® Most Courageous Rider Jersey – Greg Daniel (USA), Axeon Hagens Berman Cycling Team (USA)

Celebrating its 11th year, the Amgen Tour of California is the most esteemed stage race in the U.S. Amgen has been the title sponsor of the race since its first year.

“Amgen was born and is still headquartered in Thousand Oaks, the beautiful backdrop for today’s start of the Amgen Tour of California. Our staff members here and around the world come to work every day motivated by the chance to make a dramatic difference in the lives of patients,” said Raymond C. Jordan, senior vice president of Corporate Affairs at Amgen. “At Amgen, we are proud of the fact that the Amgen Tour of California has become synonymous with celebrating cancer survivors, thanks to Amgen’s Breakaway from Cancer initiative and we are pleased to leverage the popularity of the race with the launch of our new campaign, Breakaway from Heart DiseaseTM.”

Founded by Amgen in 2005 as a complementary component to its title sponsorship of the Amgen Tour of California, Breakaway from Cancer continues to raise awareness of the important resources available to people impacted by cancer – from prevention to survivorship. For more information about Breakaway from Cancer, visit breakawayfromcancer.com.

A partnership with Amgen, the American Heart Association (AHA) and Schwinn Bicycles, Breakaway from Heart Disease is an easy and fun way to get active in support of heart health. If you can’t attend an event in person, join the ride virtually by uploading your bicycling photo and pledging your miles. Each time a photo is submitted, you will be entered to win a set of Schwinn bikes; each photo submission will also trigger a $1 donation to the American Heart Association. Go to www.BreakawayFromHeartDisease.com to join the movement and learn more about what you can do today to help improve heart health for tomorrow.

Amgen Tour of California Stage 3 Top 20
Name First Name Team Country Gap
1. ALAPHILIPPE Julian EQS FRA 4h36’59”
2.STETINA Peter TFS USA 15″
3.BENNETT George TLJ NZL 25″
4.BOOKWALTER Brent BMC USA 27″
5.POWLESS Neilson AHB USA 30″
6.TEN DAM Laurens TGA NED 33″
7. MORTON Lachlan David JBC AUS 35″
8. DENNIS Rohan BMC AUS 48″
9. SANCHEZ Samuel BMC ESP 48″
10. TALANSKY Andrew CPT USA 59″
11. BRITTON Rob RLY CAN 59″
12. ZUBELDIA Haimar TFS ESP 59″
13. CRADDOCK Lawson CPT USA 01’02”
14. GUERREIRO Ruben AHB POR 01’18”
15. CLARKE Jonathan UHC AUS 01’20”
16. MEGIAS LEAL Javier TNN ESP 01’23”
17. HORNBECK John HSD USA 01’23”
18. VAN DEN BROECK Jurgen KAT BEL 01’31”
19. GEOGHEGAN-HART TaoAHB GBR 02’00”
20. BRAJKOVIC Janez UHC SLO 02’21”

General Classification After Stage 3

Rk
Name First Name
Team
Country
Gap
1.ALAPHILIPPE Julian EQS FRA 12h49’47”
2.STETINA Peter TFS USA 19″
3.BENNETT George TLJ NZL 31″
4.BOOKWALTER Brent BMC USA 37″
5.POWLESS Neilson AHB USA 40″
6.TEN DAM Laurens TGA NED 43″
7.MORTON Lachlan David JBC AUS 45″
8.DENNIS Rohan BMC AUS 58″
9.SANCHEZ Samuel BMC ESP 58″
10.ZUBELDIA Haimar TFS ESP 01’09”
11.BRITTON Rob RLY CAN 01’09”
12.TALANSKY Andrew CPT USA 01’09”
13.CRADDOCK Lawson CPT USA 01’12”
14.GUERREIRO Ruben AHB POR 01’28”
15. CLARKE Jonathan UHC AUS 01’30”
16. MEGIAS LEAL Javier TNN ESP 01’33”
17. HORNBECK John HSD USA 01’33”
18. VAN DEN BROECK Jurgen KAT BEL 01’41”
19. GEOGHEGAN-HART Tao AHB GBR 02’10”
20. BRAJKOVIC Janez UHC SLO 02’31”

STAGE 4 TOMORROW, PRESENTED BY VISIT CALIFORNIA
Wed., May 18 – Morro Bay to Monterey County’s Mazda Laguna Seca Raceway
Start Time: 10:10 a.m. PDT
Estimated Finish Time: 3:45 p.m. PDT

Amgen Tour of California fans can catch the action daily with live coverage of the race on NBC Sports Network (live conclusion on NBC on May 22), follow along on the Microsoft Tour Tracker App for mobile and desktop, and connect with the race through all of their favorite social media platforms. Links are available at the Social drop-down menu at www.amgentourofcalifornia.com and fans can use #AMERICASGREATESTRACE to join the conversation.

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