MARK Renshaw may be known for his sprinting legs, but on Sunday he filled a different role when working on the front of the peloton up a categorised climb.
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Renshaw was helping to drive the peloton to catch a four-man breakaway during the annual Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, an effort designed to boost the chances of his Dimension Data team-mate Nathan Haas.
While the Bathurst talent did not finish the 174 kilometre race in Geelong, his work leading the chase saw the breakaway group caught.
It also gave Haas a chance and though the Dimension Data rider was aggressive in the closing stages, he ended up seventh behind Nikias Arndt.
Still, team sports director Alex Sans Vega praised the efforts of his riders.
“The goal was to go for the win. But as it’s racing, you can’t predict that,” he said.
“We rode a very active race, though. Mark Renshaw helped to bring the break back ... Nathan himself rode a very strong finale, he managed to get into every move in the end. Sprinting to seventh after these efforts is a good result.”
Renshaw’s focus will now switch to the Tour of Dubai where he will be trying to set up stage wins for Dimension Data once more.
“Looking forward to some sprints with Mark Cavendish and the Team Di Data boys,” Renshaw tweeted.
Four of the Tour of Dubai’s stages will be contested on flat terrain, meaning Renshaw will have a busy time leading Cavendish out for anticipated sprint finishes.
Cavendish won the tour in 2015 on the back of a pair of stage victories.
