Elia Viviani may feel he still has more to do to be considered one of the best sprinters in cycling, but his commanding performance to sweep away his rivals and claim the Dubai Tour crown undoubtedly strengthened his case.
After entering the final stage with a minuscule two-second lead in the general classification, the Italian signed off in style and left nothing to chance by winning the final day to seal the Circle of Stars trophy.
While previous winners Marcel Kittlel – previously the two-time reigning champion – and Mark Cavendish – victorious in 2015 – failed to compete for the podium, Viviani was at his best to keep a tight hold of the leader’s blue jersey and also finish with the red jersey for the points classification.
He's done it! @eliaviviani wins the final stage and the #DubaiTour overall! What a week for the Italian! #WayToRide
— Quick-Step Cycling (@quickstepteam) February 10, 2018
Photo: @GettySport pic.twitter.com/lLtc8IUJ3c
The 29-year-old already had a Olympic gold medal to his name and the honour of being a European track champion, but his decision to join Quick-Step Floors from Team Sky ahead of the new season was a switch made out of an ambition to be at the top of his sport.
“When I signed with Quick-Step Floors, it was definitely a big step up. I felt after the last part of the season last year, I really believed I can do this step up into the road race. I want to become one of the best sprinters in the world and this is the best team to be on to try that,” Viviani said.
“Classics are the main goal but winning sprints is my job and with this team it’s much easier than with all the other teams.
“This start of the season is a good way for me to step up into being one of the best in the world and maybe one of the best Italian riders.”
As dominant as he was among a strong field of riders in Dubai, Viviani believes he still has more to accomplish to truly have his name mentioned among the premier sprinters.
“I really want to win more than I win until now,” he said. “I’m not a poor sprinter, but I want to really want to be a sprinter who can win Classics. With this team, I really want to take the best result I can also in the Grand Tour. The main goal now is to win Classics, but go to the Grand Tour with a strong team to take however many stages I can win in the Giro, Vuelta and Tour.
“But yeah, I think I need to win more bigger races to feel like a really big champion in cycling.”
While the final stage was icing on the cake in a week which also featured a victory on his birthday (stage two), Viviani’s main concern on Saturday was fending off Magnus Cort Nielsen, who was just two seconds behind in the standings.
A chaotic finish, however, spurred by a late crash on the final corner that took out Nacer Bouhanni (Cofidis) and slowed down others, opened the door for Viviani to push for the victory.
Quick-Step Floors’ Fabio Sabatini did well to guide his team-mate through the mess, with their inside position on the turn keeping them away from the wreckage, and set up a bunch sprint finish in which Viviani turned on the jets in the straight to edge Marco Haller (Katusha-Alpecin) and Adam Blythe (Aqua Blue Sport) at the line.
“There was a lot of thinking in my head in the last 200 metres because I checked if anyone in the front four guys was involved with the GC. If I had Cort Nielsen on the wheel, I was pretty worried to go down with a long sprint because he could pick me at the line and that is not a good finish,” Viviani said.
“But when I see these four guys in front of me and 100m to go, I say “okay, I try everything and maybe I finish fifth, but I win the GC’. With 50m to go, I went double speed and could also win the stage so it was a good feeling.”
Having begun his season with three stage wins (one at Santos Tour Down Under) and a title, Viviani is on his way to becoming one of the top sprinters in the world – if he isn’t already.
