Tour of Catalonia (1st stage), Hugo Hofstetter 9th
The first stage of the Tour of Catalonia ended in a bunch sprint with Hugo Hofstetter in 9th place and Nairo Quintana in 15th.
Photo Getty Images
x
On the line
“I managed to switch just after the last difficulty, thanks to Anthony and Élie who accompanied me. I was on the verge of cramps, so I managed my efforts in the last cleats (sic!). I passed a bit far in the bottom turn, but I came back in the “s”, to finally be positioned too much in front. Two waves came up on the left and the right and I was locked in. I lost places. Then, I found the opening, and came back to the front, but unfortunately too late”.
The debrief
“This first stage was a nervous one. When we were trapped by the break, I told the riders not to panic because only Yates and Sivakov were dangerous for the general classification, we were still 85 km from the finish and all the other teams that have some claims here for the general classification were going to ride with us to get back. This was the case. Afterwards, in the final, I asked the guys to help Hugo and Nairo in their positioning, which they did perfectly. Afterwards, as far as the sprint is concerned, Hugo is beaten by a stronger rider than him. Matthews and his team deserve to win today ».