Astana in hectic final of Tour of Turkey Stage 2

NUR-SULTAN. KAZINFORM - The second stage of Presidential Tour of Turkey from Tekirdag to Eceabat finished today with hectic final on the narrow roads after 183 km of racing, Kazinform has learnt from the club's press service.

Merhawi Kudus finished 11th, 4 seconds behind the stage winner and the race leader Sam Bennet from Ireland.

"Today was quite calm day with last three km on the very narrow roads and too much fighting for positions. I felt good today, yes, I lost 4 seconds because of guys playing sprint in front of me, but it's not a big deal. I have a good team there, who supports me well today and I feel confident with my teammates and looking for another opportunity," said Merhawi Kudus after the finish.

"The main goal for today was not to loose time in general classification. Kudus was good today, finishing among sprinters. There were many crashes today, but we managed to ride them safely. Also we were planning to sprint with Evgeniy Gidich, as today's final suits him, but he was mistaken a bit with choosing right positions. Anyway, the main goal for us is still queen mountain stage and we will try to do our best to bring our leader safe till the main fight," commented sports director Sergey Yakovlev.