Team HTC -Colombia rider André Greipel won his second consecutive stage of the Santos Tour Down Under on Wednesday, sprinting into the small German heritage town of Hahndorf.
A break of three were away for the majority of the race earning a time gap of 11 minutes but eventually being reeled in by the peloton.
Speaking to his team's press officer after the race, Greipel said: "It was a good day for us because we didn't need to put a lot of effort in to chase the break down during the race," explained Greipel. "We wanted to let the break succeed today and save our energy for the harder stages coming up.
"However the other teams were keen to get the break back and did the work so we also helped a little. Towards the end of the race the team came together as a unit for the lead out and Goss did the final pull for me. It's nice to win here again.
"The climb during the race was quite difficult, especially because of the heat but the guys looked after me and we stayed in the front over the climb. Tomorrow will be a hard day but we're ready to give it everything."
Second was Team Sky's Greg Henderson with Australian Robbie McEwen in third.
Lance Armstrong was 48th with Team Sky's Brits Ben Swift (88th) and Chris Froome (121st).
You can see highlights from this stage on Sky Sports at 5.30pm.