Juan Ayuso has the 77th edition of the Circuito de Getxo won. The young Spaniard of UAE Team Emirates was faster than Andrea Piccolo in a sprint uphill and Wilco Keldermanwho had set up the flight in the final.
An early flight of nine, including Etienne van Empel, in what might otherwise be called a Spanish armada. The peloton gave them a four-minute lead, although there was still three minutes left at a hundred kilometers from the end. UAE Team Emirates and Movistar checked in the suit and also had things under control.
UAE with team time trial, Kelderman attacks
We had to watch the peloton, because the leading group had a small lead in the last 65 kilometers. It was the moment when a quartet from UAE took off. The short team time trial was neutralized by Movistar, but that meant that the early escapees were up for the effort. Immediately three new gentlemen left, namely Juan Diego Alba (Androni), Jose Maria García (Electro Hiper Europa – Caldas) and Xabier Isasa (Euskaltel).
When this attack was over, it was Wilco Kelderman who stepped on the pedals on the Alto de Vivero in the final. The BORA-hansgrohe man was accompanied by Androni’s Andrea Piccolo on the penultimate categorized climb of the day. In the peloton, Trek-Segafredo was now accelerating, but it wasn’t really fast enough. Kelderman and Piccolo rode together for fifty seconds. Juan Ayuso didn’t wait any longer and tried to make the crossing on his own.
Sprint of four on final climb
Entering the final ten kilometres, with only the uphill finish, Kelderman and Piccolo had a ten second lead over Ayuso, who had been joined by Valentin Ferron of TotalEnergies. In the last five kilometers the two pursuers came in and we had four men fighting for the win.
The final climb to Memorial Hermanos Otxoa was a sprint of four, and it was an exciting one. Kelderman went on first to make it a long and grueling sprint. For a long time, the Dutchman seemed well on his way to a nice victory, but Ayuso overran it in the last meters, ahead of Piccolo. Kelderman had to be satisfied with third place.
1. Juan Ayuso
2. Andrea Piccolo”
3. Wilco Kelderman”
4. Valentin Ferron”