After a short break, Nacer Bouhanni was back in sprinting mode in the first stage of Bayern Rundfahrt. However, he was narrowly beaten into second by a strong Sam Bennett.

"To lose such a stage with a narrow margin in a photo finish is always frustrating. But maybe I will have another chance tomorrow," Bouhanni said.

Tomorrow's stage has a hillier profile but with a flat finish, a reduced bunch sprint is expected.