A year ago this week, Simon Clark was belatedly handed a lifeline by Israel Premier Tech, which was left without a contract for 2022 after the demise of the Qhubeka-NextHash team.

Twelve months later, after ending the season with a stage win at the Tour de France, Clark started his second campaign with the team strong, finishing second in the Australian Championship road race behind Luke Plapp (Ineos Grenadiers).

"I guess it's a bit of an eye-opener," Clark told reporters.

"You try so hard to be professional, and then something like this happens, and you think maybe you really need to work harder."

Clark got off to a good start with consecutive finishes in the 2022 Challenge Mallorca. After winning the cobblestones of Arenberg on stage 5 of the Tour, Clarke will race the Tour in 2022, pending his 2023 contract; in August, it was officially announced that Clarke had signed a two-year contract with Israel Premier Tec for another two years, which will give him the opportunity to compete in the 2022 Tour.

"A lot has happened since last summer, but I've definitely stepped up," Clark said. 'It's been a great year, and I told myself I didn't want to be known for the year I came back. And hopefully this year I can continue to do what I started today."

Clark was an aggressive presence in Sunday's Australian Championship road race, playing a part in the victory on the final lap along with Plapp, Michael Matthews (Jayco Alula), and Drew Moray (Kinan Racing). 36-year-old Plapp, whose pedigree and He was one of the most marked riders because of his form, but he had no complaints.

"It's an honor to be respected and feared," Clark said. 'It means you have to be smarter, more calculated in your moves. You have to play your cards right, like Luke did in the finals.

Clark knew that defending champion Plapp would be the dangerman in the final lap, but he felt that the responsibility of controlling the front group fell to Matthews, the reputed fastest racer.

"Matthews is the fastest sprinter, so I knew it was his job to cover that move. 'When Plapp went, I just said I'd stay with Red. If a top-notch athlete like Plapp gets indecisive for even a second, it's all over.

Clark beat Matthews to take second place, three seconds behind Plapp. The Melbourne native hopes his silver medal win will have a positive impact on the Tour Down Under and the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race.

"I've worked hard and with Israel's demotion to Pro Continental, I'm very keen to start the year strong and in good shape. It starts here and on the Tour Down Under," Clark said.

"I'm more of a one-day racer than a week-long stage racer. The prologue is at the start of the Tour Down Under, so I don't really have a good match with the engines.