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2015 USA Pro Challenge Stage 7: double wins for UnitedHealthcare, Armstrong and Dennis take titles

2015 USA Pro Challenge victor Kristin Armstrong led the women's race from day one, though UnitedHealthcare's dynamic sprinter Coryn Rivera (USA) took Sunday's circuit finale, while Rohan Dennis's title was part of BMC's dominance over seven days.

August 23, 2015
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2015 USA Pro Challenge victor Kristin Armstrong led the women’s race from day one, though UnitedHealthcare’s dynamic sprinter Coryn Rivera (USA) took Sunday’s circuit finale, while Rohan Dennis’s title was part of BMC’s dominance over seven days. On the men’s side, another UHC rider, John Murphy (USA) overcame Taylor Phinney’s early charge for the stage 7 victory. Rob Britton’s third place on GC was the best ever result for a Canadian.

Rivera wore the orange sprinter’s jersey during her victory day, one in which she won the first intermediate sprint and placed runner-up on the second. Second overall Saturday’s winner Tayler Wiles (USA/DNA Racing) pulled back two seconds on Armstrong by placing third on both intermediate sprints. Wiles came seventh in the final stage, while Armstrong was ninth. Overall third place Mara Abbott (USA/Amy D. Foundation) was also the Queen of the Mountains winner. Rivera’s teammate Abby Mickey (USA) was best young rider.

It took a couple of attempts for a break to stick in the men’s race, but six riders were able to ramble up the road. There was only a single Cat. 3 climb early in the course and fugitive Sam Spokes (Australia/Drapac) topped it first. Even though Axeon had a man in the break, it drove the pace and closed the gap as the race moved closer to the day’s intermediate sprint.

The break lost one of its soldiers near the sprint and the rest of the troops started to attack each another. Over the intermediate line, the course entered the first of four 10-km circuits around Denver. The Axeon escapee Greg Daniel (USA) and Chris Anker Sorensen (Denmark/Tikoff-Saxo) who separated themselves on the first circuit. With 14-km remaining and the race in its penultimate lap, the duo was corralled.

Cannondale, Jamis and UnitedHealthcare drove the peloton, but after a couple of attacks disturbed the order, BMC assumed control. The yellow jersey himself attacked inside 2-km, with UnitedHealthcare snagging him under the red kite. A hard left turn with 300-km to go thinned out the head of the pack. Phinney went early, with John Murphy charging up the right hand side of the road to take the win.

2015 Women’s USA Pro Challenge Stage 3
1) Coryn Rivera (USA/UnitedHealthcare) 0:59:42
2) Lauren Hall (USA/Twenty16-Sho-Air) s.t.
3) Joanne Kiesanowski (New Zealand/Team Tibco–SVB) s.t.
14) Lex Albrecht (Canada/Optum) s.t.

2015 Women’s USA Pro Challenge Final GC
1) Kristin Armstrong (USA/Twenty16-Sho-Air) 3:50:44
2) Tayler Wiles (USA/DNA Racing) +0:29
3) Mara Abbott (USA/Amy D. Foundation) +0:51
20) Lex Albrecht (Canada/Optum) +9:31

2015 USA Pro Challenge Stage 7
1) John Murphy (USA/UnitedHealthcare)
2) Taylor Phinney (USA/BMC) s.t.
3) Lucas Haedo (Argentina/Jamis-Hagens Berman) s.t.

2015 USA Pro Challenge Final GC
1) Rohan Dennis (Australia/BMC)
2) Brent Bookwalter (USA/BMC) +0:40
3) Rob Britton (Canada/Team SmartStop) +1:31