“The men of the Alpine-Phoenix did their sprint like in the books,” admitted Bennett, a good player at the finish line. “They came out of our backs faster, we could not overtake them. It could not be faster. We could have lost one in the final,” said the Irishman, however, as the team was represented by five men and a team of 30 riders who played for the win.

Not only was Wolfpack able to trust Michael Morkov, who is considered one of the best pilot fish in Pelton, but above all Bennett and Cavendish were afraid of the race. Eventually the Alpsin-Phoenix trio, along with Dries de Bond, Jonas Rickert and Phillipson, pulled the chestnut out of the fire.

“Running this way is not easy because everyone sees us in the final and ultimately in the whole match. The tempo dropped slightly on the last lap and cooled my muscles. Getting back into the sprint was tough. I had a day without it, ”Bennett admitted.

The 30-year-old Irishman, who has already shown five wins, will be relieved to see his stats this season: two stages in the United Arab Emirates tour, two in Paris-Nice and one in Bruges-La Panne.