Only 3 seconds separated Tsgabu Grmay from an exceptional spot in the top 10 in the final standings of the Tour Down Under. The African who made his debut for Lampre-Merida, finished the Australian race in 11th place, just 3 seconds from the tenth position occupied by George Bennett. 

The final stage of the Tour Down Under, 20 laps of a 4.5km street circuit in Adelaide for a total distance of 90 km, had a few surprises because of crashes that marred the end of the race: a tangle ahead of the bunch sprint held up both sprinters and GC riders.

Grmay who moved up from 13th to 11th in the overall standings, and Niccolo Bonifazio who finished 6th in the bunch sprint, both avoided the crashes. However, the latter failed to find an opening in the finale despite a good lead-out from teammate Davide Cimolai.

molai. 

Lampre-Merida got a scare with laps to go when Manuele Mori was involved in a crash, injuring a shoulder. Subsequent tests carried out at a local hospital showed no fracture.

"Today we narrowly missed out on a top 5 in the stage and a top 10 in the overall standings. It leaves us with a bit of regret," sports director Bruno Vicino said. "But if we remember that Bonifazio is starting its second year as a professional and Grmay is twenty-three years old, we can consider it a good trip to Australia. However, we missed an opportunity to take a first win."