“We’ll throw everything at him, that’s for sure.” Those words are now seared in my mind as Orica-GreenEDGEteam leader Simon Gerrans made good his promise to fully test Cadel Evans’ resolve.
History suggested a flat stage into Victor would allow the general classification contenders a ‘day off’.
But the 2104 Tour Down Under is tearing up the scripts on a daily basis, because now there’s a new mantra – ‘making it happen’.
In the opening stage Simon Gerrans made it happen and beat Andre Greipel in a sprint.
In Stirling, Diego Ulissi made it happen to trump Gerrans, Evans and Richie Porte, who were too busy watching each other.
On Corkscrew, Cadel really made it happen.
And yesterday on the windswept roads to Victor Harbor, Gerrans did likewise.
As soon as racing started, Orica-GreenEDGE swarmed all over the front of the stage like angry wasps, stinging any would-be attackers into submission, before successfully setting up Simon Gerrans for a crack at three bonus seconds on offer in the first intermediate sprint.
Cadel Evans had no answer, admitting as much in a post stage interview:
“Certainly if Orica keep going for the intermediate sprints they can eat away at seven seconds pretty quickly,” Evans said.
“We don’t have a team for that, it’s certainly not my area of expertise and Simon is good in the sprints and has a very, very good team for that.”
When it came to the second sprint, Evans looked better positioned but then suffered a mechanical problem and couldn’t pedal.
Gerrans took full advantage, wiping off another two seconds and reducing Evans’ lead to seven seconds with the finish still to come.
Luckily for Cadel, the Lotto-Belisol train was so well drilled on the seafront esplanade, the irrepressible Andre Greipel was out of sight and he ‘dragged’ teammate Jurgen Roelandts across the line for a one-two finish.
Gerrans was left looking at third and an extra one second bonus but didn’t quite have the legs to go past Cannondale’s Elia Viviani.
So seven seconds it is with two days left, or 32 seconds if you look at in purely mathematical terms.
Normally on the Willunga stage a break gets away and is allowed to swallow all the intermediate bonuses, before being reeled in just before they summit the hill for the first time.
But given what’s happened this week, how can you say that’s what will happen today?
Looking at it pragmatically, it’s a big ask for Orica-GreenEDGE will to contest the intermediates and then pilot Gerrans up the hill, twice, so he can race for the stage win.
When I think of it like that, I can only conclude Gerrans will just focus on wining on Old Willunga Hill and then assess the situation ahead of Sunday.
But then again, maybe Gerrans will target one of the intermediate sprints?
I still believe Cadel will win the Tour Down Under but clearly now not without a fight, which may even involve chasing intermediate sprints on Sunday.
Gerrans of course loves Willunga – he won there last year and finished second in 2011.
But after his brilliant Corkscrew performance, Cadel will also be confident about the finale to the TDU’s Queen stage.
“With the finish line at the top I think everyone is going to be looking at Willunga of course, but it goes back into my area of racing and experience.”
But he knows to expect a real fight.
“Of course to win the race I’m going to have to do something pretty special there but I’m guessing Orica will be looking at the intermediate sprints on the way there first of all.
“We’ll see what happens tomorrow (Saturday) then the last day still because it’s not over until it’s over.”
Which may not be until the final sprint on Sunday.
But let’s focus on today and Old Willunga Hill, where the past two years have been magical ones for the TDU.
We could be about to see something even better.
Surely it can’t be better than Corkscrew though?
It can’t be?
Can it?
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