Team Bonitas allrounder Johann Rabie, claimed his second road cycling stage race title in two months when he won the Le Coq Sportif Tour, in the Rustenburg region in South Africa’s North West Province at the weekend.

Rabie, winner of the Tour de Free State last month, laid the foundations for his victory in the five-stage event by winning Stage 1, an undulating 129km stage where he outdashed a lead group of 10. The 26-year-old then confirmed his good form when he led a five-rider  bunch across the finish line to capture the honours on the 133km Stage 2.

In the Stage 3 individual time trail, Rabie narrowly missed a hat-trick of stage wins, finishing in the runner-up place to Tasol GT’s James Perry by just one second over an undulating 36km route. Rabie’s time trial performance kept him in the race leader’s Yellow Jersey and ensured he maintained his lead in the Points Competition. It also extended his lead to 41 seconds over nearest rival, Jacques Janse van Rensburg (MTN Qhubeka).

“During the time trial I was getting time checks on Jacques (Janse van Rensburg) and David (Maree) as they were the two riders I was most concerned about in terms of the General Classification. I knew I was up on them, but didn’t have a clue as to James’ (Perry) progress,” explained Rabie afterwards.

“It is frustrating to lose the stage by such a narrow margin because you think back to where you could have maybe gone just two or three seconds faster, but the overall title was more important and that quest stayed nicely on track.”

Saturday’s 100km circuit race through the Kgaswane Nature Reserve was expected to be the stage where Rabie’s rivals would mount a serious assault on his race lead, but it wasn’t to be. Parts of the circuit included gravel/stoney surfaces as well as concrete jeep track and unseasonal rain during the early morning created conditions the organisers perceived too dangerous, so the stage was cancelled early on.

“I felt it was correct to cancel that stage,” said Rabie. “If the tricky surface sections were on a slow part of the course, it would have been fine to continue, but they came when the riders were going at speed and that could have really left someone badly injured. It’s nice to have some variety in a stage race, but unfortunately the rain just compromised the rider safety too much.”

That left just the final stage on Sunday for Team Bonitas to defend Rabie’s lead, which they did successfully. A break of two riders, that weren’t an immediate threat to Rabie’s lead, escaped early on during the 80km stage and stayed clear to battle for the stage win, which eventually went to Calvin Beneke (MTN Qhubeka).

Protected by his team, Rabie finished safely in the main pack on the final stage to secure the overall title by 41 seconds from Janse van Rensburg with Tasol GT’s David Maree rounding out the podium places a further seven seconds down.

“My form isn’t at a peak yet, but it’s pretty good,” said a satisfied Rabie. “I plan to reach peak form for when we head to Europe next month but I did have my eye on winning the Le Coq Sportif Tour. Because of the time trial I knew I had a chance of a top finish and it worked out well.

“Of course without my team’s support I wouldn’t have been able to achieve the win. The guys were so committed and I really appreciate that. We have a good understanding of each other which makes a big difference.”

In addition to the overall title, Rabie finished tie first on points with Maree in the Sprint Competition, while Maree claimed the final King of the Mountains title.

Team Bonitas, one of just two UCI Continental teams from South Africa, will head to the Western Cape later this week for races in Plettenberg Bay and Knynsa that will bookend a one-week training camp. They then compete in the Best Med Jock Tour before heading for a second European stint in late July.


Attached photographs:

Johann Rabie's focus was resolute once he'd secured the race lead after Stage 1.

Photo credit: Cycle Nation

Team Bonitas took control of the racing to ensure Rabie's Yellow Jersey was never threatened.

Photo credit: Cycle Nation