Colombian Sergio Henao (Team Sky) put in an attacking performance on stage six of the Tour of Poland on Friday to take a solo victory and the overall race lead.
The conclusion of the hilly stage saw the peloton get whittled down to a small group of contenders, with Henao and Sky team-mate Mikel Nieve taking it in turns to attack and soften up the opposition.
After Henao attacked one last time over the top of the final climb, he opened up a significant gap that a concerted effort by Fabio Aru (Astana) and the other chasers could not close.
>>> Tour of Poland 2015: latest news
Italian Diego Ulissi (Lampre-Merida) placed second on the stage with American Lawson Craddock (Giant-Alpecin). Aru finished fourth.
Henao is tied on time with Ulissi overall. Overnight leader Bart De Clercq (Lotto-Soudal) rode well among the climbers to finish the stage in 10th spot, but slipped to third overall at 10 seconds - due to bonus seconds earned by Henao and Ulissi.
The 2015 Tour of Poland concludes tomorrow (Saturday) with a final, decisive individual time trial stage around Kraków. With such little difference between the top riders in the overall classification, literally every second will count.
Results
Tour of Poland 2015, stage six: Bukovina Terma Hotel Spa – Bukowina Tatrzańska, 174km
1. Sergio Henao (Col) Team Sky
2. Diego Ulissi (Ita) Lampre-Merida at 8 secs
3. Lawson Craddock (USA) Giant-Alpecin
4. Christophe Riblon (Fra) Ag2r
5. Fabio Aru (Ita) Astana at same time
6. Mikel Nieve (Spa) Team Sky at 11 secs
7. Ben Hermans (Bel) BMC Racing
8. Jon Izagirre (Spa) Movistar at same time
10. Bart De Clercq (Bel) Lotto-Soudal at 16 secs
Overall classification after stage six
1. Sergio Henao (Col) Team Sky
2. Diego Ulissi (Ita) Lampre-Merida at same time
3. Bart De Clercq (Bel) Lotto-Soudal at 10 secs
4. Davide Formolo (Ita) Cannondale-Garmin at 11 secs
5. Ben Hermans (Bel) BMC Racing at 14 secs
6. Jon Izagirre (Spa) Movistar at 14 secs
7. Fabio Aru (Ita) Astana at 17 secs
8. Christophe Riblon (Fra) Ag2r at 19 secs
9. Mikel Nieve (Spa) Team Sky at 22 secs
10. Ilnur Zakarin (Rus) Katusha at 27 secs
Video: Secrets of the toolbox - Team Sky
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