After Huang Chong was the first to cross the line, the GC riders behind him immediately launched into a fierce battle.
Alaphilippe and Narváez had attacked early on the climb to chase him down, burning too much energy in the process. They began to fade over the final 50 meters and were overtaken from behind, losing two positions in quick succession.
In the end, the rider who crossed the line second on the queen stage was young British rider Oscar Onley of Team dsm-firmenich.
Third was Israel–Premier Tech's GC leader, another British rider: Stephen Williams.
As for UAE's young rider Del Toro, who had worn the orange leader's jersey for three stages straight since his solo victory on Stage 2, Huang Chong's sudden attack on the final climb tore him apart and cost him ten seconds in an instant.
Not only did he cross the line ninth, behind Narváez, Alaphilippe, Bart Lemmen, Simon Yates, and Paret-Peintre of AG2R from fourth place onward, but he also lost the orange leader's jersey.
Thus, after the riders in the first lead group crossed the line one after another, the GC standings of this Tour Down Under were reshuffled.
Huang Chong, the newly crowned King of Willunga and disruptor of the queen stage, had earned a ten-second GC time bonus with his stage win, but he was still a full 49 seconds behind the rider leading the live standings. The overall title was clearly beyond reach.
However, the time gaps between the GC riders of the major teams had changed completely because of his sudden victory.
After five stages, the current top five in the general classification were:
1. Williams 16:08:18 2. Onley +0:04 3. Narváez +0:05 4. Del Toro +0:05 5. Alaphilippe +0:13
Huang Chong, who was being wildly embraced by