In another finale for sprinters, Ethan Vernon (Israel – Premier Tech) emerged victorious in the second stage of the Tour of Catalonia, after covering 180.5 kilometers between Banyoles and Figueres, which featured flat terrain in the final stage.
The dual-sprinter, who achieved his first victory of the season, won the duel against his compatriot Matthew Brennan (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) and Australian Kaden Groves (Alpecin – Deceuninck), who finished 2nd and 3rd respectively.
As for the Colombians, they all finished in the same group with the winning time. The best rider of the day was Esteban Chaves (EF Education EasyPost) in 44th place, followed by Nairo Quintana (Movistar Team) in 54th, Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) in 78th, and Iván Ramiro Sosa (Kern Pharma) in 81st.
Regarding the general classification, it was a transitional stage with no changes at the top of the standings. Briton Matthew Brennan (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) held onto the race lead without incident.
The day’s breakaway was led by Briton Calum Johnston (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA), Pole Danny van der Tuuk (Euskaltel – Euskadi), and Spaniards Diego Uriarte (Kern Pharma Team) and Mario Aparicio (Burgos Burpellet BH), but past the halfway point, the breakaway was neutralized.
In the final stages, the fastest riders battled for victory on the streets of Figueres. In the end, Ethan Vernon defeated his compatriot Matthew Brennan, maintaining the British dominance.
The 104th edition of the Catalan tour will continue this Wednesday with its third stage, a super-mountainous 218.6-kilometer route between Viladecans The Style Outlets and La Molina, which includes four categorized climbs and a final climb.
Results Stage 2: Banyoles – Figueres (180,5 km)
| 1 | Ethan Vernon | Israel-Premier Tech | 4:16:16 |
| 2 | Matthew Brennan | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | m.t. |
| 3 | Groves Kaden | Alpecin-Deceuninck | m.t. |
| 4 | Laurance Axel | INEOS Grenadiers | m.t. |
| 5 | Bittner Pavel | Team Picnic PostNL | m.t. |
| 6 | Godon Dorian | Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team | m.t. |
| 7 | van den Berg Marijn | EF Education-EasyPost | m.t. |
| 8 | Aniolkowski Stanislaw | Cofidis | m.t. |
| 9 | Smith Dion | Intermarché-Wanty | m.t. |
| 10 | Foldager Anders | Team Jayco-AlUla | m.t. |
General Individual
| 1 | Matthew Brennan | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | 8:41:17 |
| 2 | Kaden Groves | Alpecin-Deceuninck | 0:06 |
| 3 | Tibor Del Grosso | Alpecin-Deceuninck | 0:12 |
| 4 | Enric Mas | Movistar Team | 0:13 |
| 5 | Juan Ayuso | UAE Team Emirates-XRG | 0:13 |
| 6 | Primoz Roglic | Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe | 0:15 |
| 7 | Dorian Godon | Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team | 0:16 |
| 8 | Andrea Vendrame | Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team | 0:16 |
| 9 | Junior Lecerf | Soudal Quick-Step | 0:16 |
| 10 | Pavel Bittner | Team Picnic PostNL | 0:16 |
Source: Revista Mundo Ciclístico