The was no satisfaction for Lampre-Merida at the end of the 2nd stage of the Arctic Race of Norway. The stage was suitable for sprinters, considering that all five climbs were covered in the first part of the stage.

Six riders escaped from the bunch in the early kilometers, later the breakaway members was reduced to 4 and finally at 17 km from the finish the action was neutralized by the peloton, which was led by Katusha.

Niccolo Bonifazio was today again the captain of the Lampre-Merida and he received good support from Davide Cimolai, who led him to the front positions of the peloton, just behind the lead-out train of Katusha.

Bonifazio approached the sprint behind Kristoff, who chose the right side of the large final straight to start his action; the Italian sprinter tried to pass him, but he could not find the necessary space to exploit his speed and he could not achieve more than 12th place.

Kristoff maintained the leadership in the overall classification, Bonifazio is 6th at 11″.

“The sprint had a bad epilogue for us, despite the fact that we approached it in a good way and that Bonifazio gave his best,” sports director Bruno Vicino explained. “I really appreciated the performance by Cimolai, who was great in supporting Niccolò.

“Tomorrow's stage will be very important for the overall classification: Koshevoy and Serpa are the riders of our team who could be competitive on the final hill to the finish in Malselv."