'I just put it in my biggest gear and went flat out': Ethan Hayter on his first Tour of Britain stage win

Ethan Hayter continued to impress at the Tour of Britain 2021, winning the fifth stage and retaking the overall lead after he narrowly missed a late crash in the final kilometre.

Ineos Grenadiers' 22-year-old team leader put in a strong performance after managing to stay upright through the final corner which saw team-mate, Owain Doull hit the deck.

The crash helped Hayter hugely as both Nizzolo (Qhubeka-NextHash) and Cavendish (Deceuninck - Quick-Step) both had to work hard to get back to the leading group with the now-former race leader Wout van Aert getting delayed by the late spill.

>>> Wout van Aert says he's 'happy he made it to the finish in one piece' after avoiding late Tour of Britain crash

Following the stage Hayter said: "The last 30 or 40 kilometres got quite hectic when it started raining. I knew most of [the route] all day which helped quite a lot. 

"We kept ourselves in a really good position in the top 20, not quite in the wind. Richie [Porte] did a good job for that stint. The guys were amazing and all I had to do was just finish it off."

Hayter spoke about how avoiding Doull's crash was "kind of like slow motion" as they sped into the final corner on the wet and slippery roads. Hayter managed to squeeze through by the barriers before sprinting to victory from a reduced group.

"I think I did a good sprint but I’m guessing everyone else got held up by the crash," he added. 

"I could just see a white jersey [Nizzolo] coming up on my left. I just put it in my biggest gear and went flat out to be honest."

Hayter, while coming from south London, moved to Manchester as part of the British Cycling Academy and trained on the roads used in stage five of this year's race, making it a special win for him.

"It’s really nice to win at the Tour of Britain and take the race lead back," Hayter added. "I’ll also remember this one as it’s my training roads and I’ve lived here for quite a few years now."

Hayter now has three tricky days to hold onto the jersey with stage six the toughest of the three. The sixth stage is a very hilly route from Carlisle to Gateshead, before an undulating stage seven to Edinburgh, and a sprinters' day to end the race in Aberdeen on Sunday, September 12.