Simon Gerrans is back, posting his first individual cycling win in 16 months and taking the Tour Down Under lead.
The record three-time Tour champion is the man to beat halfway through the race, holding a three-second lead over previous leader Jay McCarthy (Tinkoff).
It is a much more solid lead than it looks, given Gerrans' vast experience, the strength of the Orica-GreenEDGE team and the fact that the Tour is always decided by such tight margins.
Immediately after the stage, Gerrans said he was not a fan of the high-speed finish, where the riders reached more than 100km/h on the descent from the Corkscrew climb.
But Gerrans' overriding emotions were relief and joy.
Asked how tough it would be to keep the ochre leader's jersey, Gerrans said: "it's difficult, but I tell you what, it's a lot harder to get than it is to keep."
This time last year, Gerrans missed the Tour because of a broken collarbone.
It was the start of a horror run of crashes that ruined his season.
Gerrans also crashed at the end of stage two.
Apart from being part of the Orica-GreenEDGE team time trial stage win at last year's Giro d'Italia, this is Gerrans' first victory since two Canadian races in September, 2014.
"It's been a long time between drinks," Gerrans said.
He timed his sprint perfectly on Thursday to beat defending champion Rohan Dennis (BMC) by a couple of centimetres at the end of the 139km stage from Glenelg to Campbelltown.
Dennis is also well-placed in third overall, five seconds behind Gerrans.
The stage featured the first decisive moment of the Tour, the steep Corkscrew climb inside the last 10km and then the lightning-fast descent to the finish.
The peloton was averaging more than 90km/h along the valley floor before the climb and then 104km/h on the descent from Corkscrew.
Six riders crashed before the climb on a straight stretch of road, but none were injured seriously.
Immediately after the stage, Gerrans had mixed emotions.
"It felt like we really had to take our lives into our hands in that final," he said.
"There was a big crash on the Gorge (before Corkscrew), a couple of very hairy moments on the descent of the Corkscrew.
"I'm thrilled to be able to have won the stage, but there was some risk involved."
Gerrans later qualified his comments, saying any danger was a combination of riders taking high-speed risks, as well as the course.
Race director Mike Turtur noted no riders crashed on the final descent and strongly defended the course, saying it was safe.
"He (Gerrans) said that in the context of riders taking risks in the early season ... as a real pro, he knows it's not the best idea," Turtur said.
The stage came down to a select group of 10 riders who showed their form on Corkscrew, with Dennis' new BMC teammate Richie Porte also among them.
After three days of hot conditions, Friday's stage to Victor Harbor could feature rain and possibly a thunderstorm.
SIMON GERRANS' TOUR DOWN UNDER WINNING MARGINS 2006: beats Luis Leon Sanchez by seven seconds
2012: equal on time with Alejandro Valverde, wins on countback
2014: beats Cadel Evans by one second.
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