Lewis Askey outlined his form ahead of the forthcoming Spring Classics by recording his first podium for NSN in Friday’s sixth Paris-Nice stage.
The British rider took third in Apt, placing second in a reduced bunch sprint after solo rider Harold Tejada (XDS) took the victory.
Askey placed seventh on stage 2 following a more conventional sprint finish in Montargis, whereas this podium was achieved after a day of hard racing across undulating terrain in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur.
“Unfortunately, there was one guy off the front, but I think I can be happy with that,” says the 24-year-old. “It was a super hard stage, and we didn’t know where it was going to be for Bini [Girmay] or Riley [Sheehan]. In the end, I think the technical nature of the finish and the breakaway still having a lead bigger than we’d hoped meant that it was ridden pretty hard.”
After Sheehan was caught behind a split in the peloton and Biniam lost contact when the GC riders attacked on the Côte de Saignon inside the final 10 kilometers, Askey was given leadership status on the road.
He adds: “They said on the radio, ‘it’s your chance if you can stay in the bunch’. Luckily, there was this little flat before the final kicker. I took a few breaths and told myself that my finish line was the top of this climb. That gave me the opportunity.
“I just didn’t want to get boxed in in the sprint. Normally, I know if it’s a hard effort like that, and then a tiny bit of recovery, I’m pretty strong. But I’ve had it before where I’ve boxed myself in. So maybe, coming into the finish, I was a bit too much in the wind, but I allowed myself to sprint, and got the result.”
With Askey and his teammates at Paris-Nice comprising the team’s core Classics group, he hopes today’s result is a good indicator of a productive period.
“It’s always difficult to say, but I managed to go around today, so I can’t be going too badly,” he says. “I’ll just keep doing what I’m doing: trust the coach, trust the process of it all, and hopefully the legs are in good shape for the Classics.
“I think this has been a good week. We’re six days in and it has been a good block. There’s not really much else we need to do now. I think it will be about resting up, being fresh mentally, staying healthy, and hopefully what will be will be.”