Danny van Poppel believes Sam Welsford can reach the same dizzying heights as cycling's greatest sprinters after the first stage of the Tour Down Under.

In his first World Tour race with his new team, Beulah Hansgrohe, Welsford's perfectly timed leadout gave him a one-ring advantage over Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain Victorious), Biniam Girmay (Intermarché Wanty), Caleb Yuan (Jayco Arla) by one more wheel to win the finish line.

Van Poppel seemed just as excited about the result, if not more so, than the Australian sprinter who, after two seasons with dsm-firmenich PostNL, joined the team with an eye on the track events at this year's Paris Olympics.

With all the attention on Primoš Roglic's move to Jumbo Visma, the departure of Irish champion Sam Bennett at the end of last season and the addition of Welsford, sprinter moves on the team were largely overlooked. Van Poppel, however, is different. Van Poppel, who had the pleasure of winning in South Australia on Tuesday, has managed to send a different Sam to the line, with the Dutchman and Ryan Mullen, who honed his skills under Bennett, teaming up once again.

"I did well [leading out] last year, but that was with Bennett. But the new Sam has power. We knew that if we could get the perfect leadout, he could keep the power going.

Beulah Hansgrohe gathered at the front of the pack in the last 2km, and with just over 1km to go, three riders, including Welsford, took the lead.

"He has great power from the track. If guys like Marcel Kittel, Andre Greipel, and Welsford can lead out, that's what we need. Sam Bennett is a good friend of mine, but at the end of the day it's a business and we want to win.

"He [Welsford] is a relaxed guy, and to be honest, he's just been on the World Tour for two years, he's new to everything, and he's still hungry. He can be a new sprinter. I think he's a perfect match for us."

Welsford similarly praised his new teammate. The 27-year-old, who completed his first Tour de France last year, said he spent the preseason training with his new team.

"I did a training camp in Mallorca with them and then just a couple of simulations, but with guys like Danny van Poppel and Ryan Mullen in front of me, I don't need to do that much training. They are pretty good and pretty special.

"[Van Poppel] was amazing. He encouraged us in the last three kilometers. Everyone says that, but he can sense a race before it happens and see things in slow motion.

"In the sprint for the last 400 meters or so, he was ahead of me. I was on the wheels and I thought, "This is already hard on the wheels."

Welsford said there was no particular difference in the new team's approach, and that the results were largely due to their lead-out experience.

"It's hard to say anything different. Just be patient and approach it in a way that you leave it to others," Welsford recalled.

"You can't race for every minute, especially now that the speed is so much faster. The days of five guys racing each other in the last two kilometers are over. Now it's like running the last three kilometers with two people and you have to surf.

"It's hard to say anything different, maybe a little more experience."

Welsford took home his first ochre leader's jersey with this win. If energy is any indication, more is to come from this team, which has Bernhard Eisel and the recently retired Shane Archibald as sporting directors.

"Sprinters feed on confidence, and you only get that when you are producing good results.

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