Wout van Aert powers to late Tour of Britain triumph in dramatic finale

After eight days of racing, the Tour of Britain came down to the final 100 metres and a single imperious burst of speed from Wout van Aert on the Esplanade in Aberdeen. With impeccable timing, the Belgian surged out from behind Mark Cavendish to take his fourth stage win of the week, with the overnight leader Ethan Hayter a disconsolate 11th after being deposed in a few seconds.

Starting the stage with a four second advantage on the Belgian, and with time bonuses deducted on the finish line, Hayter knew that if Van Aert won or finished second he needed to be immediately behind him. On paper, that sounded simple, but in the seething mass of bodies and bikes that contested this bunch sprint the outcome could have gone either way, with both riders alternately obstructed then in the clear as the finish unfolded.

All bar the last of the 173km went ideally for Hayter, with the survivors of the stage-long breakaway surviving stubbornly under the impulsion of the Exeter stage winner Robin Carpenter and two youthful talents, the 19-year-old Londoner Thomas Gloag and the 21-year-old Irish national champion Ben Healy.

The escape scooped up the time bonuses at the three intermediate sprints, simplifying Hayter’s task, and bringing them to book was difficult enough to sap the strength of Cavendish’s and Van Aert’s teams.

As the final metres began, Ineos were at full strength, but controlling an anarchic bunch sprint to suit their young leader proved beyond them. A hundred metres out Hayter was in the clear, however, with open road ahead while Van Aert, to his left on the other shoulder of the American Colin Joyce, had to contend with Cavendish’s final lead-out man, the world champion Julian Alaphilippe dropping back in his path.

Somehow, Van Aert avoided Alaphilippe, sticking tight to Cavendish’s wheel with Hayter to his right. For an instant the pair were shoulder to shoulder, but as Cavendish and Greipel opened up down the left, Van Aert somehow found an extra ounce of speed to burst between Andre Greipel and Hayter, who had no response, and slipped back out of the top 10.

It was the first time that the 22-year-old had missed a beat in eight days, and some perspective can be taken from the fact that the rider who showed him a clean pair of heels will be favourite to win the world road race championship in two weeks, while Alaphilippe, the reigning champion, finished only third and never looked at his effervescent best.