Impressive Tom Pidcock strikes in final stage of Ruta del Sol, Iván Romeo overall winner
Tom Pidcock claimed victory in the final stage of the Ruta del Sol. In the last stage, which saw Christophe Laporte abandon following a crash, he crossed the finish line solo after an impressive acceleration. Iván Romeo secured the overall win.
On the final day of the Ruta del Sol, it was all hands on deck for the GC contenders. In the last thirty kilometers, the Alto de la Primera Cruz appeared twice near the finish town of Lucena. This climb is about three kilometers long with an average gradient just under six percent. The steepest section is the last one and a half kilometers below the summit. The finish was almost five kilometers after a descent, in Lucena.
Iván Romeo (Movistar) started the final stage as the race leader. His lead over closest challenger Andreas Leknessund was seven seconds. The rest of the peloton followed at 49 seconds or more.
The break of the day consisted of three riders. Dutchman Milan Vader (Pinarello Q36.5) was joined by Julius Johansen (UAE Emirates XRG) and Markus Hoelgaard (Uno-X Mobility). The trio held firm until the first ascent of the Alto de la Primera Cruz. On that climb, we saw some skirmishes between the GC contenders, but no decisive splits yet. However, Alex Aranburu took three bonus seconds at an intermediate sprint on the summit.
Laporte crash, Pidcock attack
The descent remained lively. While Christophe Laporte crashed—seemingly without serious injury—several attacks went off the front. Tim Wellens and Leknessund also launched offensives, but Movistar’s team was alert and immediately closed the gap. Then Victor Campenaerts went on the attack. He started the Alto de la Primera Cruz with a lead, but the pace was so intense that the Visma | Lease a Bike rider was reeled back in uphill.
The race really ignited when Tom Pidcock launched his move. The British rider from Pinarello-Q36.5 was unstoppable and dropped all his rivals. Jan Christen was the closest to stay with him. Behind them followed a group including Romeo and Leknessund.
Pidcock wins the stage, Romeo takes overall victory
Ultimately, the situation on the descent to the finish did not change significantly. Pidcock held on, Christen finished second, and behind them the group with Romeo and Leknessund contested the sprint for third place. Since the time gaps remained small, Romeo secured the overall win.
