Abu Dhabi: UAE Team Emirates’ Dan Martin secured fourth spot in the overall General Classification (GC) standings at the Critérium du Dauphiné in France.
Martin’s impressive result came after he produced yet another strong display on the seventh and final stage of the race, finishing sixth behind eventual winner, Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott).
Martin not only narrowly missed out on a GC podium spot, but also came extremely close to claiming the points jersey, finishing just three points behind the green jersey winner, Daryl Impey (Mitchelton-Scott).
In the final stage of the Tour — which featured the fourth summit finish in a row — Edward Ravasi also showed his strength, as the young rider held his own in a determined breakaway that was eventually caught with just 10km to go. His notable performance, along with contributions from Valerio Conti, Simone Petilli, Manuel Mori and Rory Sutherland helped UAE Team Emirates pick up second place in the overall team standings and cap off a successful seven days of racing ahead of the Tour de France.
“I felt good the entire stage, but in the final kilometres, my legs didn’t respond how I thought they would. I’m still happy with the overall results in this race. I’m at a physical level I didn’t really expect. I won a beautiful stage, I took fourth overall. The team, very young here, rode well at my side and was working strongly the entire week,” said Martin adding, “They were incredible. We paid in the team time trial, but in the mountain stages, my teammates were always there, first in the escapes and then with support. Now, I’m going to recover for a few days and then build towards the Tour de France.”
The final GC was won by Geraint Thomas (Team Sky), who finished +02:35 over Martin, who will now gear up for the Tour de France (July 7-29).
