Matej Mohorič (Bahrain Merida) held on to the leader’s jersey at the Binck Bank Tour to win the race overall as Michael Matthews (Team Sunweb) won the final stage.
The final and the longest stage of the race started in Lacs de l’Eau d’Heure and finished in Geraardsbergen and the riders had to tackle the famous Muur four times on the finishing circuit.
Matthews surged clear to take the win after a break was brought back. Greg Van Avermaet (BMC Racing Team) finished second, 1″ down with Zdeněk Štybar (Quick-Step Floors) in third at three seconds. Matthews had started the stage in second place overall, 30″ behind Mohorič, and along with the stage win time bonus, it looked like he might nab the overall win.
However, with the help of his Bahrain Merida team mates, Mohorič succeeded in defending the overall lead as he conceded just fourteen seconds to the stage winner. He held on to win by just 5″ from Matthews with Tim Wellens (Lotto Soudal) finishing third overall.
“I’m super happy,” said Mohorič. “It is the biggest victory in my career so far. It was an incredible tough stage today. We controlled the race from the start and all the guys helped me until they could. I managed to come back, even if there were several attacks. At the finish it was very close, but fortunately it was enough. I’m also happy because it was the first time for me on the cobbles and it has been a good test for the next season.”
