Sam Bennett missed out on his second win of the season by millimetres on Wednesday, being pipped in the final metres on stage one of the Tour of Hongrie.
Bennett was led out by his team-mate Danny Van Poppel (Bora-hansgrohe) but Dutchman Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco AlUla) was glued to his back wheel and managed to inch by right before the finish line in Szentgotthárd.
The result will be frustrating for Bennett, who now has four second places, two thirds and a fourth this season, and just one win.
He is trying to build momentum prior to the Tour de France in July. He will be fired up by going so close and should have two more sprint opportunities in the race, on Thursday and in the concluding stage on Sunday. The other two stages on Friday and Saturday feature uphill finishes.
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He is trying to regain the same sprinting prowess which won him two stages plus the green jersey in the 2020 Tour de France. His racing since then has been hampered by a knee injury and then a bout of Covid which took him out of last year’s Vuelta a España. He won two stages there prior to his withdrawal.
Ireland’s Eddie Dunbar won the Tour de Hongrie overall last year. He is currently racing in the Giro d’Italia, starting Wednesday’s stage 14th overall.
Meanwhile the final two overseas teams have been announced for next week’s Rás Tailteann. The England Embark Spirit BSS squad is an amalgamation of the Spirit BSS and Embark-Bikestrong teams which both competed strongly last year.
Embark-Bikestrong took four top-10 stage placings, including third on stage two with Michael Chadwick. Chadwick and Joseph Rees finished eighth and 10th overall. The squad finished second to Ireland in the team classification.
Embark Spirit BSS also notched up four top-10 stage placings, including George Kimber’s fourth place on stage two. He ended the race ninth overall, with Josh Housely 11th. The squad finished third in the team ranking.
The team links itself completely to the race, noting: “The Rás Tailteann as being our spiritual home. We had some amazing results in 2022 and really animated the race last year alongside the Irish National Team and Velo-Revolution. We’re looking forward to coming back this year to race for the top prize.”
The team has competed on Irish roads already this year, with Joe Wilson winning the Coombes Connor Memorial in April and Damien Clayton finishing 10th in Rás Mumhan.
Also confirmed for the race is the Austria – ARBO Headstart ON-Fahrrad squad. It is regarded as a very important development team in the country.
Rás Tailteann race director Gerard Campbell welcomed the team and underlined the strong recent history with the country. “Recent editions of this race have been dominated by Austrian riders, and has featured winners such as current World-Tour rider Lucas Postelberger who claimed victory in 2015 and Clemens Fankhauser who won in 2014 and 2016. We’re expecting exciting things from this team and look forward to watching how the Rás unfolds for them over the five days.”
The team includes Irishman Leo Doyle, who was second behind Wilson in the Coombes Connor Memorial.
This year’s Rás will begin next Wednesday in Navan and will feature stage finishes in Birr, Ennis, Castlebar, Monaghan and Blackrock, Co. Louth. The clockwise route will see the riders cover 768 kilometres and 14 categorised climbs over five days.
