‘No One Wanted To Do It- Yates’ Struggle on Willunga Hill, Jayco AlUla’s Battle for Dominance in Tour Down Under Reaches Climax

As the heart-pounding drama of the Tour Down Under unraveled every pedal stroke created a difference between glory and defeat. The spotlight on the track was falling squarely on Jayco AlUla’s valiant struggle to unleash the full potential of their star climber, Simon Yates, on the formidable Willunga Hill. 

As the battle unfolded on stage 5, for a 3 km ascent, the Australian team faced the daunting task of putting up a relentless pace to showcase Yates’ pedaling prowess. But the cycling community also believed that the loss of the dynamic Luke Plapp and the concise climb worked against their aspirations. This ultimately left the British climber to navigate the final moments of the stage in a fiercely contested group. As the competition intensified let’s delve deeper into how the race to the finish line ultimately unfolded.

Stage 5 showdown unfolded as Yates’ determination tested on the iconic climb

The Australian team has previously tried to make the climb at Willunga Hill hard enough for other riders and work in favor of Yates. But as it came out, things didn’t work out as it was probably planned. But going against the disappointment, Yates and his team tried to remain determined, emphasizing the challenging race dynamics instead of faulting their efforts.

Eight cyclists entered the final 500 meters together with Simon Yates finishing up in sixth position behind Oscar Onley, the stage winner for Tour Down Under. After the end of stage 5, Yates shared, “We wanted to make it a bit harder the first time round, but with Plappy gone we don’t actually have the men to do it”. He further added, “No one else really wanted to take it up and it was kind of on us, so there were still quite a lot of fresh guys coming to the final climb”.

Although Yates, unfortunately, did not win the race and was disappointed regarding how the situation unfolded, he revealed that he was more disturbed by the race situation and not his or his team’s performance on the track. Yates added, “It’s not the result we were really hoping for, but we did our best and the guys did a great job.” He also mentioned that his teammate, Chris Harper was there with him for quite a long time and that helped to put the pace on for him.

Chris Harper along with the whole team was putting in all their hard efforts for the race. Yates intentionally released Harper’s wheels which ultimately prompted Onley to make the effort to catch up with the Adelaide rider. But this step was still not enough to fatigue the team.

Yates’ strategy, Onley’s triumph, and Jayco AlUla’s quest for victory

As the stage wounded up, the sports director Mat Hayman stated, “We needed the climb to be super fast, and Simon likes to be a little bit more explosive, so we were trying to lure a few people out with Chris, which gave (Yates) an opportunity to launch an attack instead of doing it straight from the front. We just wanted to try and make it as hard as possible, so Yatesy could have a crack.” But Hayman also added that he realized the fact that it’s quite hard to unsettle people in such a short and fast climb.

Read More: Oscar Onley Bags First Professional Cycling Win at Willunga Hill, Setting Up A Dramatic Finish for the Tour Down Under

Hayman continued to praise Chris Harper. He said, “He’s obviously in great form, he was where he needed to be. Simon was protected, he had Kell with him in the last lap.” 

As the curtain falls on this riveting stage, Jayco AlUla finds themselves on the brink of leaving the Tour Down Under without a coveted victory. 21-year-old British rider,  Oscar Onley of DSM-Firmenich PostNL was crowned the winner of the 24th Tour Down Under after the final stage showdown. 

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