Lobato sprints to 6th place in the Tour de Wallonie stage 2
Juan Jose Lobato sprinted to a sixth place in the second stage of the Tour de Wallonie today in . LottoNL-Jumbo team-mate Victor Campenaerts escaped with a group earlier in the day, but the group caught them before the final.
Jasper de Buyst won the stage and Dylan Teuns took over the lead in the general classification.
“It was a battle to be in the breakaway today,” Sports Director Addy Engels said. “Finally after 55 kilometres, a group of five riders broke away and Victor was among them. Behind the leaders, the other teams started to control the race.
“You always have a bit of hope that they miscalculate and the breakaway stays in front. We also had hope because the local lap was quite tricky.”
In the final, Team LottoNL-Jumbo kept riding in an attacking style.
“In the final, Lars tried to break away with a small group. But they also got caught. Then it turned into a bunch sprint. We hoped that Juan Jose was able to compete for the win, but he did not get further than sixth place. That is a pity.”
Tomorrow, the riders will race a tricky stage with finish on the steep Mur Saint-Roche climb.
“Tomorrow, they need to climb the Mur Saint-Roche two times. The final time, the finish is on top of the climb.
“Just like today, we want to ride in an attacking style. We want to be in the breakaway. We do not have the riders here to win it from the bunch. Although, Juan Jose has shown he is able to handle a short, steep climb. We have to see how the race develops.”
