'Perfect finish for me' - Lund Andresen's stock continues to rise after milestone victory at Tirreno-Adriatico

Toppling some of the best sprinters in the world, finishing ahead of Arnaud De Lie (Lotto-Intermarché) in 2nd, Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) in 3rd, as well as Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step) and Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek), Lund Andresen scored a milestone 10th professional victory and Decathlon CMA CGM’s eighth of the calendar year.

It was unsurprisingly a slow-burner of a day in the peloton with 221km on the menu, with an expected sprint finish in Magliano de' Marsi.

Lund Andresen detailed the calm dynamics in the peloton for the most part, despite the inclement weather conditions, and how things suddenly sprang into life inside the final 30km when Jonas Abrahmsen launched an attack, and as the tension began to build towards the finish, where the rain had disappeared. 

“Today was okay because you had time to put on rain jackets and stuff, it’s pretty much that the first 150km is like a massive group ride, you’re just going around, talking to friends, and then it’s like a new race with 30km to go,” Lund Andresen told CyclingProNet. “Yeah, I think it was a nice finish, it didn’t rain too much towards the end.”

Under the Flamme rouge, Decathlon CMA CGM and Lund Andresen found themselves in the prime position, and with the road rising slightly to around 2%, the sprint was launched from far by Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek). 

“My leadout is so good, a big congrats to them also for the job. They were super committed, we did exactly like the plan and I’m proud of them,” said Lund Andresen, who also explained that this type of finale suited him well. 

“Yeah, that’s what I hoped for at the start, that maybe it would be too long for the big guys, pretty much the perfect finish for me, so I’m happy to take advantage of it,” said Lund Andersen. 

This victory continues the 23-year-old Dane's fine run of form, which included a great spell in Australia, winning a stage of the Tour Down Under, before taking the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race. 

He then backed this up with a 6th place finish at Omloop Nieuwsblad before adding 7th at Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne, the lowest aggregate result of any male rider on Opening Weekend.