MARK Cavendish was forced to settle for second place in Monday’s second stage of the 2012 Tour of Britain.
Despite a couple of late breakaways towards the end of the 177.8 kilometre stage from Nottingham to Knowsley in Merseyside, Team Sky looked well-placed to deliver the Manx Missile to the bunch sprint finish.
Bradley Wiggins and Luke Rowe were once again Cav’s last two lead-out riders as the Manxman avoided a repeat of Sunday’s heavy crash.
With less than a kilometre to go, Cavendish dropped back slightly in order to get a better run-in to the finish but was unfortunately boxed-in to one side of the road, leaving him with an almost impossible task.
The Manx Missile’s trademark burst of speed saw him surge through a gap towards the line but it proved to be just too much for the Manxman as he was pipped to the line by half a bikelength by former HTC-Highroad team-mate Leigh Howard.
The Tour of Britain continues with a 161.4km stage from Jedburgh to Dumfries on Tuesday.