France's Nacer Bouhanni held off a challenge from Italian Roberto Ferrari as he made a dash for victory to win the second stage of the Tour of Beijing on Saturday.
The French national champion in 2012 broke free with 500 metres of the race remaining, with only Ferrari threatening to catch him in his bid for glory.
But the 23-year-old crossed the line with a bike's length between himself and second-placed Ferrari, with the main pack of racers - that included Australian Mitchell Docker - just behind.
Bouhanni of the FDJ.FR team will now wear the leader's red jersey for the third stage of the race, a 176km route across Beijing's mountainous Great Wall district to the north of the urban area.
Ferrari, who rides for the Lampre-Merida team, is in sixth place in the overall standings.
Stage two is the longest section of the Tour of Beijing at 201.5km stretching from northwest to northeast Beijing.
Bouhanni crossed the finishing line just within five hours.
London Olympics silver medallist and defending Tour of Beijing champion Tony Martin of Germany is hoping to make it three wins in a row this year.
The event was established in 2011 and Martin won it both then and last year.
Also racing is Portugal's Alberto Rui Costa, who won at the world championships in Tuscany last month.
Martin is currently 41st in the overall standings, while Rui Costa is 98th.
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