Orica GreenEdge's Caleb Ewen has won the opening stage of the 2016 Santos Tour Down Under.
The Tour organisers of this 18 year old race, dug out an old favourite for the start of this year's race, the first UCI World Tour event of the season and used the inner-northern suburb of Prospect, which is about 5kms away from Adelaide in South Australia as the host of this stage.
The riders which included four British riders for Team Sky and Adam Blythe for Tinkoff plus BMC's Rohan Dennis who was defending his title, were treated to a 130.8 kilometre course designed by Mike Turtur which seemed suited for a mass bunch finish in Lyndoch on a very warm day with temperatures around 34.8C.
After an 8.1km neutral zone, the race got under way at Grand Junction Road in Walkey Heights and four kilometres in, we had the first break of the race with Alexis Gougeard of AG2R, Martijn Keizer of Lotto Jumbo and Sean Lake of Uni South Australia, in his first World Tour race, taking a lead of a minute.
The first climb of the race came at the 12.8kms mark on Tea Tree Gully Hill. This was a 3.5km climb with a 6% average gradient and with a lead of 2.20, Sean Lake took the ten Subaru KOM points ahead of Keizer and Gougeard with Orica GreenEdge's Michael Hepburn leading the peloton over the top and Lake will be in the blue polka dot jersey for stage two which is from Unley to Stirling
With twenty kilometres gone, Orica GreenEdge has forced the gap down to 1.20 before the riders reached the first feed zone which had been brought forward due to the heat.
The gap drifted back out to 1.45 with less than a hundred kilometres left in the stage and then 2.15 as they headed towards the Barossa wineries.
The wind was getting up, with reported speeds of 60kmh, as the front trio headed to Lyndoch for the start of three circuits of 26.9kms, riding at an average speed of 37.2kmh.
It forced the gap back down to 1,38 with 76.2kms left for the trio who were now in Cockatoo Valley heading for the first iiNet Sprint of the day which Alexis Gougeard took, banking three seconds ahead of Keizer with 56.9kms gone.
The gap was down to 1.19 and then down to 1.10 with 65.5kms left as Orica continued their long stint on the front in temperatures of 40c.
The lead was 1.10 as they started the second lap after completing the first in 43rd minutes.
Into the last fifty kilometres and the gap was down to 1.15 and still the same as the front trio contested the second sprint of the day with Alexis Gougegard taking another three points as he was slowed by two police motorcyclists.
With 42.4kms left, Martijn Keizer decided to drop back to the peloton who were only 68 seconds behind.
Gougeard and Lake worked and got their lead back up to 1.50 as Orica GreenEdge continued on the front of the peloton.with Michael Hepburn leading the way.
The lead was down to 42 seconds with 29kms left but as Lake and Gougeard went over the finish-line for the final lap, the gap was out to a minute.
With twenty kilometres to go, Gougeard was caught, leaving Lake, who was third in the Australian National Championships, out on his own.
Lake, who is a good time trialist, pushed his lead out fo fifty seconds, riding at speeds of 47.6kmh with no team seemingly wanting to chase him down.
Ian Stannard brought up Team Sky towards the front of the peloton which was led by Lampre and AG2R before Luke Durbridge took over to try and raise the tempo.
Going into the final ten kilometres and Sean Lake was still 35 seconds ahead going into Williamstown but he was finally caught with 5.8kms.
Team Sky, working for Ben Swift, moved to the front with Lotto Soudal and Dimension Data as the teams started to get their sprinters to the fore.
Sky had three men on the front going under the flam rouge and into the final bend. The sprint was on and out of the slipstream came Caleb Ewen of Orica GreenEdge to win in 3.24.13 ahead of Mark Renshaw, Wouter Wippert, Marko Kump, Adam Blythe, Giacomo Nizzolo, Ben Swift, Steele Van Hoff, JJ Rojas and Greg Henderson..
Ewen, who will wear the leaders ochre jersey going into the second stage said to Paul Sherwen: "I felt really good all day and the team backed me all day and I was able to finish it off.
"I have to thank Simon Gerrans for letting me go today. If he says ride for me we do but today he let me go."
Mark Renshaw, will wear the red sprint jersey as Ewen who has fifteen sprint points following his win, will wear the leader's jersey.