He’s done it again! Lewis Askey powers to second pro win in stage two of the Four Days of Dunkirk sprinting on one leg!

The Four Days of Dunkirk often delivers fireworks, and stage one was no exception. While most expected a full bunch sprint, the race was so aggressive that a classic sprint never materialized. Zingle proved both the strongest and the smartest by positioning himself perfectly at the front. Stage two looked set for a similar scenario, with a finale that wasn’t entirely flat.

Early in the stage, five riders jumped clear in the French 2.Pro race. The breakaway, made up of three Frenchmen and two Spaniards, quickly opened up a gap of over two minutes. But they couldn’t extend their lead much further in the opening phase, and with 145 kilometers to go, their advantage had already dropped to just a minute and a half.

After leaving the flat roads behind, the breakaway still held a two-minute advantage as they entered the hill zone, where several categorized climbs awaited. Despite the terrain, the front group managed to stretch their lead back out to nearly three minutes with 65 kilometers to go.

That gap remained steady for a while, until a crash in the peloton disrupted the rhythm. Among those involved was Conor Swift (INEOS Grenadiers), who sustained notable injuries and was forced to abandon the race along with Martin Urianstad Bugge.

Following the crash, the peloton gradually lifted the pace, and the break’s advantage started to shrink. Still, with 40 kilometers remaining, the gap remained above two minutes thanks to strong cooperation up front. That was the cue for several teams to move riders to the front of the bunch and begin the chase in earnest.

With 30 kilometers to go, the gap to the five breakaway riders began to tumble. By the 25-kilometer mark, it was down to just under a minute as the peloton closed in fast. Still, the leaders didn’t throw in the towel and entered the finale with around thirty seconds in hand.

But in the end, it wasn’t enough. On the uphill drags in the closing kilometers, the breakaway was reeled in by the charging bunch. Several riders launched late attacks, splitting the field slightly, but most of the peloton stayed together, setting up a large group sprint.

In the run-in to the final kilometer, big names like race leader Zingle moved up. The fight for position was messy, and a traditional bunch sprint never quite materialized. On the technical, uphill finish, it was Lewis Askey who timed his effort to perfection and claimed his second professional win. Remarkably, he unclipped in the final meters but still managed to cross the line first, celebrating with one leg dangling as he hit the line.