Rafal Majka of Poland and Bora-Hansgrohe outsprints George Bennett of New Zealand and LottoNL-Jumbo. Photo / Getty
Kiwi rider George Bennett was edged out of a stage win at the Tour of California's second stage this morning.
Poland's Rafal Majka, who had won three Tour de France stages, just beat the New Zealander in a heads-up sprint with Bennett after they helped a breakaway stay clear of
the field.
Majka now leads the overall classification with Bennett, riding for LottoNL-Jumbo, now second overall.
But more crucial is the fact that some of the best in the race against the clock, including Andrew Talansky and Brent Bookwalter, are now 48 seconds off the lead.
"It was the perfect situation for us," Bennett said. "It's pretty cool that we tried something like that and it almost worked. I'm pretty disappointed that it didn't work. But at the same time we got some valuable seconds on Talansky, Bookwalter and those guys."
