Despite claiming another 2nd place, Peter Sagan remained content with Friday’s action on stage 2 in Abu Dhabi regaining momentum after a hectic period after his win in Richmond. After a strong lead-out from Daniele Bennati, Sagan put in a long sprint but had to see himself surpassed by stage winner Elia Viviani on the closing meters.

After the flat-out sprint conclusion to stage 2 of Abu Dhabi Tour, Peter Sagan notes that he is happy with the effort his teammates put in on the final run-in.

“Viviani is a pure sprinter and a very good one, so his victory doesn't come as a surprise. He was in my wheel and that’s the game. My teammates did a very good job for me today and Bennati gave me a super lead-out. It was a short stage, which is better when the weather is like this; so overall it was a nice day. Tomorrow is a mountain stage and we will see what we can do”, comments Peter Sagan, who takes the leadership in the fight for the white jersey. 

“I was there but it’s the last race and it was an easy day. I didn’t have great legs. I’m happy for Elia Viviani, he’s a former teammate. He’s a pure sprinter, so it’s normal that he wins. He’s good, Elia is very good and has won lots of good races.”

Stage 2 of Abu Dhabi Tour took the riders on a 129km city course in the capital. After catching the breakaway, the sprinters’ teams lined up for fast action on the final kilometers with Tinkoff-Saxo taking control at the front, tells team sports director Tristan Hoffman.

“The boys started with 3km to go, which means that they took initiative. That’s good and it’s also a great sign that Peter is feeling better. He told the guys that he was ready to go for it and they put in a fine performance. He opened his sprint after Bennati had done the lead-out for him, but Viviani was in his slipstream and took the win. Peter found his legs - that is good news, but Viviani is a strong sprinter and he passed him in the end”, says Tristan Hoffman and adds about Saturday’s stage with a summit finish:

“Tomorrow is a really different story. We go inland and into the heat and finish on top of a real climb. There are some very strong GC riders here so maybe Bruno Pires can try, but it will be very difficult against the big stars”.