Lozano Stars in Breakaway at Abu Dhabi Tour Opener

23 February 2017

Race: Abu Dhabi Tour, Stage 1

Start/Finish: Madinat Zayed/Madinat Zayed, UAE

Distance: 189 kilometers

Madinat Zayed, UAE — Team Novo Nordisk exceled in its Abu Dhabi Tour race debut with David Lozano featuring for more than 125 kilometers in the day’s main breakaway. The United Arab Emirates race serves as the team’s second World Tour stage race.

Charles Planet was in the first group of riders to attack following the neutral start. They were brought back and then Lozano and five other riders attacked and within three kilometers had managed to build a one-minute gap. The peloton kept them at a manageable distance throughout the 189-km stage with a maximum gap of around five minutes. Following the second intermediate sprint, three riders including Lozano dropped back to the peloton. With 16 kilometers to go, all escapees were reeled in. A bunch finish ensued with Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data) taking the win. Team Novo Nordisk riders Quentin Valognes and Charles Planet finished inside the top ten in the Best Young Rider category at 8th and 10th respectively.

“The peloton let the breakaway go from the start. The first attempt Charles tried and in the second one, I was out there and they let us go,” Lozano said. ”When we reached the second sprint, the gap was under a minute, so I dropped back so I could help the team heading into the sprint.”

Team Novo Nordisk, the world’s first all diabetes pro cycling team, continues racing at the Abu Dhabi Tour on Friday with a 153-kilometer race beginning in Abu Dhabi on Al Maryah Island. Stage 2 features two intermediate sprints before ending in Al Marina.

Gallery:

Results:

1^st: Mark Cavendish (Dimension Data) 4:37:06
2^nd: Andre Greipel (Lotto Soudal): same time as Cavendish
3^rd: Niccolo Bonifazio (Bahrain Merida Pro Cycling Team): same time as Cavendish

Team Novo Nordisk Results: