Vuelta a la Región de Murcia “Costa Cálida”

Vuelta a Murcia scheduled a demanding 176km stage Friday afternoon, but the strong winds forced the organisers to change things. Just as the riders began rolling through the neutral zone, the decision was taken to stop the race and move the start a couple of hours later, when the peloton was due to tackle a reduced course of just 80 kilometers.

Once the stage resumed, an 11-man breakaway went 1:10 clear; later, two riders attacked from there before the main difficulty of the day, Alto Virgen del Castillo, and Marc Soler (UAE Team Emirates) ended up taking the win. Behind, a big surge at the front of the peloton split it into small groups with some help also from the strong crosswinds, and among those who booked a place in the main one was also the promising Viktor Soenens.

The Belgian, who came here after finishing tenth overall at Volta Comunitat Valenciana, produced another consistent ride and impressed yet again even when the tempo went up as the wind continued to make it tough for the riders and he had to let go of the group on the steep gradients of the exposed last climb. Soenens gave his best there, staying with some more seasoned riders, and concluded this tough day of racing as the squad’s highest-ranked rider.

Photo credit: ©Dario Belingheri / Getty Images