UAE Tour 2024 Stage 5

February 23, 2024 Poor Jacopo Mosca was left on his own in the break after two Lotto-Dstny riders sat up and went back to the bunch. Mosca carried on but only had forty seconds with 45KM remaining. There was a bit more tension in the group than in previous days and the positioning started much earlier. As the KM's waned, Bora-Hansgrohe and Astana seemed to have timed things right, never getting pinched as the road moved left and right through round-abouts. Mark Cavendish of Astana was led out perfectly but did not have the legs to sustain the speed, and dropped away from contention. A surge from the second row saw Sam Welsford of Bora-Hansgrohe gain ground while Olav Kooij of Visma-Lease a Bike was hugging the barriers and looking possible for the win. Tim Merlier of Soudal Quickstep came late, around Welsford and threw his bike forward toward the line. He was just short, making Kooij the winner. Merlier took second and third went to Welsford. It was later discovered that Merlier had a soft rear tire in the sprint which is extraordinary given the rate he was closing in on Kooij.