Cyclingflash
Satisfaction for runner-up Matthew Brennan, but Brit spots room for improvement

Satisfaction for runner-up Matthew Brennan, but Brit spots room for improvement

Matthew Brennan came close to his first victory of the new cycling season on Wednesday. The Brit only had to concede to Tobias Lund Andresen in the sprint of the opening road stage of the Santos Tour Down Under. However, Brennan didn’t seem disappointed afterwards.

In the first ‘regular’ stage of the Tour Down Under, Visma | Lease a Bike didn’t shy away from their responsibility. The Dutch squad decided to help control the race in support of their designated finisher Matthew Brennan.

In the finale, the yellow-black team stayed grouped near the front of the peloton in service of their leader Brennan. The young Brit was then delivered in a good position in the final kilometer but narrowly had to settle for second place behind Decathlon CMA CGM’s new recruit Tobias Lund Andresen.

"Feeling is good"
“We rode a strong race as a team today,” Brennan reflects on his employer’s website. “We controlled the entire stage and positioned ourselves well in the closing kilometers.”

Still, Brennan sees room for improvement in the days ahead. “Maybe we took the wrong line in the final kilometer, but overall we can be satisfied with our performance. The feeling is good.”

Watch the final sprint again here: