He had come close before in a team time trial at a Grand Tour â his Cannondale squad finished second, six seconds off the pace at the 2014 Vuelta a Espana â but there was little doubt about the result this morning.
Jumbo-Visma were fastest through the first 13.2km checkpoint â by 11 seconds â extended their lead to 14 seconds by the 20.1km mark, and kept pulling away to crush all comers by 20 seconds.
Bennett, not a time trial specialist, surprised his teammates with his strength to remain with the team's big engines right until the line.
"We had a tactic to do it without George because he's just too small," laughed teammate and overall leader Mike Teunissen.
"But in the end, he felt really good and could help us. The other guys were really strong, really long pulls. All the little kickers were really hard, but everyone kept their pace."
Their dominant display moved Bennett to fifth overall â 10 seconds behind opening stage victor Teunissen â but his role on the team means he's unlikely to stay in the mix alongside the general classification contenders for too long.
Bennett was remarkably used as a domestique on flat terrain on the opening stage â the diminutive climber toiling away on the front of the peloton to keep the breakaway in check â and he is fully committed to helping team leader Steven Kruijswijk, meaning that he will sacrifice his own hopes of a top performance for the benefit of the team.
That approach will feel like it has paid off in incredible fashion after today's success.
