Immediately after the flag was dropped, it was all hands on deck for the riders. The wind caused nervous situations and eventually led to the peloton breaking into several pieces. Five riders, including classification leader Wiebes, escaped and quickly took a three-minute lead. Although the peloton did everything it could to reduce the gap, the escapees held on. Wiebes triumphed for the second day in a row.

In the group behind, Ferrand-Prévot showed fine instincts for riding echelons. The Frenchwoman was part of the first chasing group and eventually crossed the line in 10th place. In the general classification, she moved up to sixth place. "What Pauline showed today is promising. You can't expect her to ride with the best in her first race, so in a way this surprises me", race coach Jos van Emden said.

"From the first kilometre, the pace was high", he looks back on the stage. "In the first big shift we were part of the front. That was good to see. In the last 50 kilometres, we were with four riders in the first echelon. The moment there were three of them in the back of the group, they were ridden off. That is unfortunate, but it is part of the race. The riders are disappointed at the moment, but satisfaction prevails with me."

Van Emden is looking forward to tomorrow's stage, in which the Jebel Hafeet is very likely to turn the classification upside down. "Longo Borghini took a big lead today, but as always we will go for the highest possible. A podium place is definitely realistic. That's a very nice prospect."