Image 1 of 59 Francisco Mancebo (Skydive Dubai) pushes the pace in the breakaway (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 2 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) celebrates his win in Dubai (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 3 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant Shimano) on the podium (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 4 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) won the sprint on stage 2 in Dubai (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 5 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 6 of 59 Omega Pharma-QuickStep displeased with the outcome (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 7 of 59 Race leader Taylor Phinney (BMC) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 8 of 59 Willem Jakobus Smit (Vini-Fantini-Nippo) pulls through in the breakaway (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 9 of 59 Riders pass under a cycling sculpture (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 10 of 59 Omega Pharma works for sprinter Mark Cavendish (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 11 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) winner of stage 2 of the Dubai Tour (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 12 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) celebrates on the podium in Dubai (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 13 of 59 BMC protects race leader Taylor Phinney (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 14 of 59 Race leader Taylor Phinney (BMC) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 15 of 59 Crosswinds battered the peloton in Dubai (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 16 of 59 The lonely landscape in Dubai (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 17 of 59 Riders head back to the city on the horizon (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 18 of 59 The Dubai Tour (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 19 of 59 The peloton in full flight (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 20 of 59 BMC sets the pace (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 21 of 59 Omega Pharma-Quickstep lined up for Cavendish (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 22 of 59 Tinkoff Saxo lined out together in Dubai (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 23 of 59 Diogo Nuñes (Banco-BIC Carmim), Francisco Mancebo (Skydive Dubai) and Willem Jakobus Smit (Vini-Fantini-Nippo) made up the breakaway (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 24 of 59 Palm trees dwarf the peloton in the Dubai Tour (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 25 of 59 Garmin Sharp in Dubai (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 26 of 59 Phinney leads the points classification, too (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 27 of 59 Thor Hushovd (BMC) (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 28 of 59 Taylor Phinney gets some advice from the team car (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 29 of 59 Fernando Alonso (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 30 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) wins stage 2 in the Dubai Tour (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 31 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) put in a strong time trial (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com) Image 32 of 59 Rui Alberto Faria Da Costa (Lampre - Merida) (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 33 of 59 The peloton in Dubai (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 34 of 59 Taylor Phinney (BMC), Rui Alberto Faria Da Costa (Lampre - Merida), and Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 35 of 59 Vicenzo Nibali (Astana) (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 36 of 59 Alessandro Malaguti (Vini Fantini - Nippo - De Rosa) (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 37 of 59 Fernando Alonso and Taylor Phinney (BMC) (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 38 of 59 Fernando Alonso and Peter Sagan (Cannondale) (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 39 of 59 Taylor Phinney (BMC) kept the race lead in the Dubai Tour (Image credit: ANSA/Peri-Carcone) Image 40 of 59 (Image credit: ANSA/Peri-Carcone) Image 41 of 59 Taylor Phinney (BMC) at the start of stage 2 of the Dubai Tour (Image credit: ANSA/Peri-Carcone) Image 42 of 59 (Image credit: ANSA/Peri-Carcone) Image 43 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) on top in stage 2 of the Dubai Tour (Image credit: ANSA/Peri-Carcone) Image 44 of 59 Matteo Tosatto and his Tinkoff - Saxo teammates (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 45 of 59 Team BMC takes a pull (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 46 of 59 The peloton in Dubai (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 47 of 59 Stage 2 of the Dubai Tour was dusty (Image credit: ANSA/Peri-Carcone) Image 48 of 59 Willie Smit (Vini Fantini - Nippo - De Rosa) (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 49 of 59 The start of stage 2 of the Dubai Tour (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 50 of 59 Astana on show at the Dubai Tour (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 51 of 59 Mauro Vegni at the Dubai Tour (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 52 of 59 The peloton roll out at the Dubai Tour (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 53 of 59 Fernando Alonso and World champion Rui Costa (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 54 of 59 The peloton roll out at the Dubai Tour (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 55 of 59 The rear end of the peloton on stage 2 of the Dubai Tour (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 56 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant Shimano) on the podium (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 57 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant Shimano) wins stage 2 of the Dubai Tour (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 58 of 59 Marcel Kittel (Giant Shimano) beat Sagan and Phinney (Image credit: Bettini Photo) Image 59 of 59 Bjarne Riis catches up with Alessandro Petacchi (Omega Pharma - QuickStep) and Matteo Tosatto (Tinkoff - Saxo) (Image credit: Bettini Photo)

Marcel Kittel (Giant-Shimano) claimed stage 2 of the Dubai Tour in a sprint finish on Thursday, edging out Peter Sagan (Cannondale) and Taylor Phinney (BMC Racing). The American held onto his race lead, while Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma QuickStep) was left frustrated as he found himself boxed in inside the final few hundred meters.

“The team did a great job in bringing me into position,” Kittel said at the finish.

“We did a lot of work and then in the last 500 meters I had do work for myself and then I started my sprint with 200 meters to go. I’m very proud of how we worked for the win today. There was a lot of wind and I hope it’s better in the next few days.”

Kittel’s win came in a chaotic sprint with his Giant-Shimano team going to-to-toe with Mark Cavendish’s Omega Pharma QuickStep squad.

The day’s early break, consisting of Francisco Mancebo (Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team), Willie Smit (Vini Fantini-Nippo) and Diogo Nunes (Banco BIC-Carmim), formed after just a handful of kilometres and built up a lead approaching four minutes.

With BMC holding a healthy advantage, with Phinney and Steve Cummings first and second on GC, the trio’s chances would always be limited. The American team were the first squad to begin marshalling the front of the peloton, the long flat roads ideally suited for the pursuit, and with 28km remaining the gap had been reduced to just over a minute.

By that point the sprinters’ teams began to usher their candidates towards the front. Movistar, Garmin and Lampre joined Giant-Shimano and Omega Pharma towards the front and when Mancebo - the last man standing from the break – was caught with less than 15km to go, the likely sprint became an inevitability.

With 7km to go the bunch dove through a tunnel and it was Kittel’s cue to ensure that his team positioned him near the front of the peloton. The sudden injection of pace saw Omega regroup with Alessandro Petacchi and Mark Renshaw key to Cavendish’s chances of success.

Omega Pharma wrestled control at a U-turn with 3km to go, but Kittel, ideally suited to the flat track sprint, was ideally positioned as the peloton approached the final 1,000 meters. The same could not be said for Cavendish - riding in his first race with both Petacchi and Renshaw at his side – as he was swarmed by the bunch.

There was a brief cameo for Fabian Cancellara (Trek Factory Racing) as he looked to set up Giacomo Nizzolo, but Kittel, powering through the middle had too much speed for Sagan and an impressive Phinney.

“I think the team rode really well in the finale and we can be really proud of this result. This is the first race or first lead out for lots of teams. Everyone has to train and find each other. It's not easy but it will come,” Kittel added.

“I have some good local support here, who showed me around and I think it was an advantage today.”

“In the last 500 metres I was on my own but it wasn't a problem because my team left me in a good position. I had good legs and I could wait and wait on Phinney's wheel and then went with 200 metres to go. Now I'm looking forward to the next two stages.

Full Results

# Rider Name (Country) Team Result 1 Marcel Kittel (Ger) Team Giant-Shimano 2:50:30 2 Peter Sagan (Svk) Cannondale 3 Taylor Phinney (USA) BMC Racing Team 4 Juan Jose Lobato Del Valle (Spa) Movistar Team 5 Giacomo Nizzolo (Ita) Trek Factory Racing 6 Roberto Ferrari (Ita) Lampre-Merida 7 Nikolay Trusov (Rus) Tinkoff-Saxo 8 Lucas Sebastian Haedo (Arg) Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team 9 Jacopo Guarnieri (Ita) Astana Pro Team 10 Raymond Kreder (Ned) Garmin Sharp 11 Lasse Norman Hansen (Den) Garmin Sharp 12 Tyler Farrar (USA) Garmin Sharp 13 Adriano Malori (Ita) Movistar Team 14 Antonio Viola (Ita) Vini-Fantini-Nippo 15 Takashi Miyazawa (Jpn) Vini-Fantini-Nippo 16 Dylan Van Baarle (Ned) Garmin Sharp 17 Mark Renshaw (Aus) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team 18 Pier Paolo De Negri (Ita) Vini-Fantini-Nippo 19 Danilo Hondo (Ger) Trek Factory Racing 20 Soufiane Haddi (Mar) Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team 21 Riccardo Stacchiotti (Ita) Vini-Fantini-Nippo 22 Jesus Herrada Lopez (Spa) Movistar Team 23 Michael Valgren Andersen (Den) Tinkoff-Saxo 24 Yousif Mirza (UAE) United Arab Emirates 25 Alessandro Malaguti (Ita) Vini-Fantini-Nippo 26 Ivan Rovny (Rus) Tinkoff-Saxo 27 Alexandr Porsev (Rus) Team Katusha 28 Thor Hushovd (Nor) BMC Racing Team 29 Klaas Lodewyck (Bel) BMC Racing Team 30 Mark Cavendish (GBr) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team 31 Reinardt Janse Van Rensburg (RSA) Team Giant-Shimano 32 Sergei Chernetski (Rus) Team Katusha 33 Damiano Caruso (Ita) Cannondale 34 Andrea Guardini (Ita) Astana Pro Team 35 Enrique Sanz Unzue (Spa) Movistar Team 36 Rory Sutherland (Aus) Tinkoff-Saxo 37 Peter Velits (Svk) BMC Racing Team 38 Sebastian Langeveld (Ned) Garmin Sharp 39 Steven Cummings (GBr) BMC Racing Team 40 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team 41 Simon Buttner (Fra) RTS-Santic Racing Team 42 Ramunas Navardauskas (Ltu) Garmin Sharp 43 Eugenio Alafaci (Ita) Trek Factory Racing 44 Filippo Pozzato (Ita) Lampre-Merida 45 Martin Velits (Svk) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team 46 Marco Marcato (Ita) Cannondale 47 Matteo Tosatto (Ita) Tinkoff-Saxo 48 Alexey Lutsenko (Kaz) Astana Pro Team 49 Pavel Brutt (Rus) Team Katusha 50 Oliver Zaugg (Swi) Tinkoff-Saxo 51 Tony Martin (Ger) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team 52 Rui Alberto Faria Da Costa (Por) Lampre-Merida 53 Nelson Oliveira (Por) Lampre-Merida 54 Manuel Antunes Amaro (Por) Banco BIC Carmim 55 Tan Peng Yuan (Tpe) RTS-Santic Racing Team 56 Janez Brajkovic (Slo) Astana Pro Team 57 Johan Van Summeren (Bel) Garmin Sharp 58 Fabio Silvestre (Por) Trek Factory Racing 59 Luca Paolini (Ita) Team Katusha 60 Yannick Eijssen (Bel) BMC Racing Team 61 Maciej Bodnar (Pol) Cannondale 62 Bruno De Matos Sancho (Por) Banco BIC Carmim 63 Jon Izaguirre Insausti (Spa) Movistar Team 64 Haimar Zubeldia Agirre (Spa) Trek Factory Racing 65 Rafaa Chtioui (Tun) Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team 66 Daniele Ratto (Ita) Cannondale 67 Vladimir Gusev (Rus) Team Katusha 68 Alexandr Pliuschin (Mda) Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team 69 Edward King (USA) Cannondale 70 Evan Huffman (USA) Astana Pro Team 71 Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Movistar Team 72 Juraj Sagan (Svk) Cannondale 73 Bruno Manuel Sil Pires (Por) Tinkoff-Saxo 74 Kristof Vandewalle (Bel) Trek Factory Racing 75 Kim Magnusson (Swe) Vini-Fantini-Nippo 76 Jonathan Castroviejo (Spa) Movistar Team 77 Joao Pereira (Por) Banco BIC Carmim 78 Adil Jelloul (Mar) Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team 79 Fabian Cancellara (Swi) Trek Factory Racing 80 Angel Vicioso Arcos (Spa) Team Katusha 81 Alessandro Vanotti (Ita) Astana Pro Team 82 Rafael Ferreira Reis (Por) Banco BIC Carmim 83 Niccolò Bonifazio (Ita) Lampre-Merida 84 Bob Jungels (Lux) Trek Factory Racing 85 Alex Dowsett (GBr) Movistar Team 86 Manabu Ishibashi (Jpn) Vini-Fantini-Nippo 87 Lawson Craddock (USA) Team Giant-Shimano 88 Luca Dodi (Ita) Lampre-Merida 89 Fabio Sabatini (Ita) Cannondale 90 Sun Jae Jang (Kor) RTS-Santic Racing Team 91 Rick Zabel (Ger) BMC Racing Team 92 Koen De Kort (Ned) Team Giant-Shimano 93 Francisco Mancebo (Spa) Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team 94 Alberto Losada Alguacil (Spa) Team Katusha 95 Nikolas Maes (Bel) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team 0:00:13 96 Alessandro Petacchi (Ita) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team 0:00:14 97 Andrea Palini (Ita) Lampre-Merida 0:00:16 98 Davide Cimolai (Ita) Lampre-Merida 0:00:18 99 Jay McCarthy (Aus) Tinkoff-Saxo 0:00:22 100 Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Garmin Sharp 0:00:23 101 Henrique Madeira Casimiro (Por) Banco BIC Carmim 102 Daniel Mestre (Por) Banco BIC Carmim 103 Wouter Poels (Ned) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team 0:00:25 104 Joaquin Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Team Katusha 105 Tom Veelers (Ned) Team Giant-Shimano 0:00:27 106 Valentin Iglinskiy (Kaz) Astana Pro Team 0:00:34 107 Julien Vermote (Bel) Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Cycling Team 0:00:38 108 Ramon Sinkeldam (Ned) Team Giant-Shimano 0:00:55 109 Sebastian Lander (Den) BMC Racing Team 110 Bert De Backer (Bel) Team Giant-Shimano 111 Majid Albalooshi (UAE) United Arab Emirates 0:01:03 112 Ahmed Almansoori (UAE) United Arab Emirates 0:01:11 113 Mohammed Albalooshi (UAE) Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team 114 Alex Coutts (GBr) RTS-Santic Racing Team 0:01:19 115 Willem Jakobus Smit (RSA) Vini-Fantini-Nippo 0:01:27 116 Cheng Ji (Chn) Team Giant-Shimano 0:04:07 117 Ruslan Karimov (Uzb) RTS-Santic Racing Team 0:04:43 118 Keon-Woo Park (Kor) RTS-Santic Racing Team 119 Mansour Thani (UAE) United Arab Emirates 120 Nawaf Albalooshi (UAE) Skydive Dubai Pro Cycling Team 121 Wen Chung Huang (Tpe) RTS-Santic Racing Team 122 Valter Pereira (Por) Banco BIC Carmim 123 Mohammed Almansoury (UAE) United Arab Emirates 124 Khaled Altani (UAE) United Arab Emirates 0:05:46 125 Ahmad Albalooshi (UAE) United Arab Emirates 0:05:57 126 Diogo Nunes (Por) Banco BIC Carmim 0:08:15 127 Boris Shpilevsky (Rus) RTS-Santic Racing Team 0:12:48