Stephen Bassett: “My team has been really good at defending this Peacock jersey”

August 14 ^th 2022 - 19:55 [GMT + 2]

It was a stressful last two days - more than actually being in the break! The team has been really good at defending this Peacock jersey. These Belgian guys [his runner-up Aaron Van Poucke and his team Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise – ed.] really know how to ride their bikes and it was nice to see how the whole team worked to keep their moves under control. Especially the first 30 kilometres were quite twisty and there were a lot of attacks, so it was good to have everyone switched on from the very beginning. It was a relief when the three-man break went away, as they would mark all the points up for grabs.

It’s really nice to win this Peacock jersey. I’m not a super talent, so I have to carve out my opportunities. This year I’ve devoted myself to breakaways. With this week, my count is up to 8 breaks this season – 20% of the races I’ve contested so far in the campaign!