It's another sunny day here in Portugal - and it's the first of six consecutive hilly stages awaiting us! Welcome to stage number 4, ladies and gentlemen! The stage is 55km shorter than yesterday's - but be assured that some riders will still have sore legs tonight!
Today's journey starts in Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo, a town with just about 2,000 inhabitants. Better known than this city is actually the nearby village of Castelo Rodrigo, which is one of twelve "historical villages", or Aldeias Históricas de Portugal. Of course, the castle is the main monument of this village. Due to recurring battles for the castle, more and more inhabitants left for what's today's starting location Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo.
Just like yesterday, the whole course leads northwards, and we're still near the Spanish border. After the first 20 descending kilometers, the riders will then hit the first 3rd category climb up to Vila Nova de Voz Côa, reaching the summit after 27.7km.
Only 17 kilometers - just a downhill and another uphill - later, they reach the next category 3 KoM sprint in Torre de Moncorvo. After this descent, the road will be somewhat flatter for a few kilometers, before reaching the first intermediate sprint in Santa Comba de Vilariça. 74km will by done by then.
This intermediate sprint is just before the first 2nd category (10, 8, 6, 4, 2 points) ascent of the race, up to the Serra de Bornes, officially starts. It's kind of a 3-steps-climb, with the second step being the steepest, as we'll see later. When the riders have reached this summit, the main difficulties - and just more than half of today's distance - are over. 70 kilometers to go from there.
There are still some uncategorized hills, though, and those who were already in trouble before won't really be able to recover on such an undulating route. We'll have another intermediate sprint after 102.2km, just ahead of another nasty hill.
The riders then already reach the finish line in Bragança - but the third intermediate sprint is taken just under the red kite. Another lap of about 15 kilometers will then be done before we'll know today's winner!
Bragança is again a city with a very long history. It's the capital of the correspondent district, and has about 40,000 inhabitants. Traces of human civilization reach back to the Bronze Age. It was later conquered by the Romans, then by the Arabs, before finally being reconquered by the Portuguese. The cathedral is one of the monuments you definitely want to see if you're not riding a race here!
And that's what our gladiators will soon be doing, we just have enough time to take a look at the bookies' favorites. They think the terrain is definitely too hard for the sprinters, as they only list puncheurs: Skujins, Bakelants and Bobridge are unsurprisingly on top, followed by McCarthy, Koretzky and Vogt. Buchmann, Anuar Aziz, Chernetskiy and Prevar should do well, too.
We'll see - I still think the really punchy sprinters could have their say, too. We'll know in a few hours, but now let's head over to the start line!
We have the first attacks about 5km into the race - and it's a fast race, given that the course leads mainly downhill for the first 20 or so kilometers.
Without any surprise, KoM leader Pszczolarski is on the move, as well as Putti and Aydar Zakarin. And guess who's with them? Vogt, who is on today's favorites list! Will the peloton really be happy to let them go?
Well, first there are some more riders trying to get to the front. Müller, Vichot, Bratashcuk, Chernetskiy - yes, another pre-stage favorite - Jaramillo and Wahyudi.
Who'd have thought it - it's not over yet! The next attackers are ex aequo KoM leader Stuyven, Michely, Lienhard and Trakhov. That makes a total of 14 men ahead of the peloton.
Definitely too many for Power, who gets back the last foursome. 10 riders still up front, though.
If 14 are too many, what about 13? Roman, Caruso and Gebrezgabihier try to bridge the one-minute-gap.
Just before the front group starts the first climb of the day, the last three attackers actually join them. So we now indeed have 13 riders ahead.
The hill isn't very long, but it has some quite steep sections. The flatter parts towards the end should give Pszczolarski, who is by far not the best puncheur of the group, a good chance to get some more points.
But the peloton still isn't that far behind. Stuyven is pushing hard; if he isn't allowed to get into that breakaway group, he at least wants to get them back to have a chance for some points himself.
However, half way up the climb, his legs seem to be rather empty, and the gap clearly starts growing now.
At least, it's Stuyven's teammate Vichot who takes maximum points on top of this first hill. Jaramillo is 2nd, and his teammate Roman outsprints Gebrezgabihier on the final meters.
1. Vichot - 6
2. Jaramillo - 4
3. Roman - 2
None of them previously had any KoM points, but with 16 still on offer, and Pszczolarski apparently not strong enough to beat many of his companions, we could well have a new KoM leader by tonight.
Actually, Pszczolarski and Zakarin are almost a minute down at the summit - let's see if they can get back on the downhill.
The pack is already 4 minutes behind as they cross the line - they really had a slow second half of the climb!
After the downhill, the riders directly head into the next uphill section. It's a very steady climb, without any really steep inclines.
And we already have our next KoM sprint. And we have the same order as some kilometers ago, although it's much more contested than the previous one.
Vichot is now on par with Pszczolarski and teammate Stuyven, but the climb with the most points at stake is yet to come.
The peloton is still about 4 minutes back.
As the front group stayed together on this climb and didn't permanently lose a member yet, we can probably name them the breakaway of the day. Let's take a closer look at these 13 riders:
Vogt, Gebrezgabihier and Chernetskiy are what I'd call the first-level puncheurs. None of them is a strong sprinter, though, and if the climbing capability should come into play on the category 2 climb, they probably won't be among the strongest.
Caruso leads the "mid-level" puncheurs, and he's the best sprinter of the group. We can count Bratashcuk, Wahyudi, Jaramillo, Müller and Vichot to this group, too. Jaramillo's clearly the strongest climber among them - actually even the strongest of the whole group.
Then there's Roman, who isn't the best puncheur, but the second best climber. Finally, Pszczolarski, Putti and especially Zakarin would need kind of a miracle to hold on until the end.
The peloton - still travelling at a rather low pace - is led by Schachmann for Bakelants, Aidan Van Niekerk for Koretzky, Sakalou for Skujins and Power for Bobridge. Nothing unexpected here.
Just at the foot of the next climb, we have the first intermediate sprint of the day. Roman takes this one.
1. Roman - 6
2. Gebrezgabihier - 4
3. Caruso - 2
The pack has cleary accelerated and is only 2'28" behind now - with the hardest part of the stage yet to come!
And here's the profile of the climb we already talked about in the stage preview. The first part is long, relatively steep, but steady. The second "step" has a cruel kilometer with a really steep incline, and then the last kilometer up to the KoM sprint - after a short downhill - will hurt the legs again.
Not much happens on the first two sections, but then Jaramillo accelerates on the slight dowhnhill just before the final ramp! Can he really go through with this one?
Yes, he can! He wins the first 2nd category sprint of the race and takes 10 more points:
This means that Vichot is our virtual KoM leader, as he is about one and a half minute ahead of Jaramillo in the GC. But that could still change on the second half of the race!
The breakaway is now really scattered all over the place. Let's have a look at the current situation:
Caruso, Vichot, Jaramillo
+ 22" Gebrezgabihier, Wahyudi, Roman
+ 22" Chernetskiy
+ 7" Bratashcuk, Müller, Putti
+ 28" Vogt, Pszczolarski
+ 11" Zakarin
+ 1'10"
Peloton
That's a disappointing performance especially from Vogt, who had no chance of keeping up. Bratashcuk and Chernetskiy should be further ahead, too - let's see if they can make it again.
Meanwhile, we still have pretty much the same picture in the peloton. Evonik, Bennelong, Festina and Indosat are working hard to give their leaders a chance for the stage win. 70 kilometers still to go.
And you may ask serious questions about Philips' strategy, as they send Bardet back to help a struggling Te Brake! They actually send their whole team back...
... as do Sauber! With the exception of the two breakaway riders, all of them have to help Salleh catch the peloton again. But well, their biggest hope might be Wahyudi anyway...
And it's probably needless to say that Ackermann was on the wrong side of the split again. As was Vanoverschelde, which is somewhat obvious, though. Basically all the sprinters are behind the peloton now, except for Van der Lijke and Houle.
A shrinking peloton is on one hand bad news for the escapees, as it indicates a high speed. On the other hand, it also means less helpers available. Let's see where that leads.
For the moment, they cross the line at the second intermediate sprint, with Gebrezgabihier taking full points.
1. Gebrezgabihier - 6
2. Vichot - 4
3. Roman - 2
After the first three groups came back together, we now have 7 men remaining up front:
Vogt, Pszczolarski and Zakarin are back in the peloton.
And it's over for Müller and Putti, too, just before they cross the line at the intermediate sprint. Bratashcuk isn't far away, either - definitely not a great race by him.
The peloton is 2'40" behind the leaders as they pass the intermediate sprint. 50 kilometers to go.
By the way, Vogt is already behind the peloton, in a group with the likes of Harrison and Ackermann.
Vuillermoz and Kastrantas are now leading the chase, and the gap is down to 1'40". Still 44 kilometers to go, looks like a relatively early catch.
Caruso feels that the pack has come too close by now, so he attacks on a slight downhill section. The leaders are now on the undulating section of the course, having just left behind another hill. 30 kilometers remaining, and the gap is just under 90" now.
Vichot is the first to respond, and he quickly catches up with the Italian. The others are 20 seconds down the road, the peloton a further 1'21".
The gap to the pack hasn't changed much lately, they clearly didn't want the early catch. 25km to go.
The rest of the breakaway have closed the gap, and so we again have our 7 brave escapees ahead, with excactly 20 kilometers to go. They will soon reach Bragança.
The acceleration in the front group have made the pack's deficit grow again, and it's now more than two minutes! Will their gamble really work out?
As we had announced, the riders pass the final intermediate sprint just under the red kite. Vichot takes this one.
1. Vichot - 6
2. Roman - 4
3. Gebrezgabihier - 2
The escapees can now take a close look at the final 1,000 meters, so they can plan their attacks one lap later. However, although the pack's still more than 2 minutes down, they can't start any tactical moves yet.
Only ten kilometers to go! The remaining helpers in the pack seem to be completely out of gas, and so the pack doesn't get closer at all!
It looks like letting go a 13 men breakaway - and delaying the catch when it seemed really possible - wasn't a great decision. It really looks like we'll have an upset win here!
Well, Bobridge doesn't seem to agree yet. With a great acceleration, he breaks free, taking Bakelants and Koretzky with him - wow, that's a trio!
However, even after their attack, the gap is still 2'18" - that's too much. The pack follows 20 seconds behind. The main rider who missed the move is Skujins, and so he's chasing hard now.
Only five kilometers remaining for the breakaway - and except for the last 1,000 meters, the route is easy.
And even though the three furious chasers Bobridge, Bakelants and Koretzky have reduced their deficit to 1'14" in no time, it should be enough, shouldn't it?
The peloton is 31" further back - especially Bobridge could make a nice jump in the GC if this gap sustains!
As the pursuers reach the 5km mark, Bakelants decides it takes more for a stage win and attacks out of this group! As you can see, Koretzky and Bobridge aren't far behind - neither is the peloton!
He's got to make good one minute flat on the breakaway - mission impossible?
Bobridge and Koretzky have caught Bakelants again - and they can already see the breakaway in front of them! About 2.5km left for the front group - can they keep the stage favorites at bay? It's still a 50" gap!
And another 50" is the gap to the pack, so at least the chasing trio should gain some time on other competitors!
After his brother couldn't keep up with the breakaway, it's now Ilnur Zakarin chasing the very same! He's got some help from Fritsch and Smit, but the gap to Bobridge, Bakelants and Koretzky has stabilized around 50".
Last kilometer for the breakaway! Don't get confused by Vassdal, he's 15 kilometers behind and is just lapped here. Gebrezgabihier is leading the seven men who will fight for today's stage win. Here's the current order:
Gebrezgabihier Caruso Chernetskiy Vichot Roman Wahyudi Jaramillo
Of these, Vichot has the best acceleration, but Caruso is the better sprinter. Jaramillo and Roman have a good kick, too whereas Gebrezgabihier probably hopes to just have the most punch left hammering up the final incline!
The same holds for Chernetskiy - and he actually has a great position. Wahyudi has got the worst acceleration and he really can't sprint, so it'd be a surprise to see him winning. But maybe he's just got the most left in the tank?
With 800 meters to go, Vichot has now taken the lead - which doesn't come as a surprise, given his great acceleration. Caruso has already passed Gebrezgabihier as well, whereas Chernetskiy tries to take Vichot's wheel. Roman, Jaramillo and Wahyudi should wake up if they want to get that win!
And a win for the breakaway gets more and more probable, as the gap to the chasers is still 46 seconds!
Vichot and Caruso are now about level with 500m left! Jaramillo has finally launched his sprint as well, and is fighting for 3rd against Chernetskiy.
Gebrezgabihier is already clearly fading and has dropped to 5th. As expected, Wahyudi can't keep up with the others.
300 meters to go, as Vichot seems to have a slight edge over Caruso again! Jaramillo and Chernetskiy don't seem to be able to challenge them for the win.
Gebrezgabihier and Roman are now fighting for 5th, whereas Wahyudi's already out of the picture - and therefore out of contention.
Just 200 meters left, and what a duel between Vichot and Caruso! Impossible to say now who will take this one - and even Chernetskiy seems to have found another gear and is closing in!
Jaramillo and Roman don't seem to be able to fight for the podium now, and Gebrezgabihier is getting slower and slower.
We're on the final 100 meters, and Caruso has now taken the lead! Vichot is fading, and so is Chernetskiy - could Jaramillo, currently 3rd, even fight for 2nd?
Caruso doesn't seem to have much left in his tank either, and so everything's coming back together on these final meters! Vichot holds on to 2nd, but Jaramillo is really close - can any of them even get the first place here?
Or can Chernetskiy find a last bit of energy and sprint to the podium? Gebrezgabihier and Roman will likely have to settle for 5th and 6th.
The winner is Damiano Caruso! He was the best sprinter of the group, and this probably made the difference in the end. Well done!
But who's going to be 2nd? Vichot? Jaramillo? Or even Chernetskiy?
It's Arthur Vichot! He edges out Daniel Alexander Jaramillo by a few inches. He surely won't be happy to miss the stage win by close to nothing - but at least he takes the KoM jersey from this stage.
Sergey Chernetskiy finishes 4th, Aleksandar Roman 5th and Amanuel Gebrezgabihier has to settle for 6th after he probably launched his sprint too early. Nandra Eko Wahyudi comes in 7th, 10 seconds behind the others.
We've seen that the chasers weren't able to close the gap - but how are they actually doing?
Here they are! Bobridge and Koretzky are launching their sprint, but Bakelants doesn't seem to be able to respond. His late attack probably cost him too much energy.
Ahead of them is still Vassdal, so just ignore him.
Clement Koretzky will probably have some thorough discussions with his team tonight, as he's clearly the strongest of this trio and easily takes what could have been the stage win. But it's just the 8th place. He loses 49 seconds on Caruso.
Jack Bobridge is 9th and can probably be the happiest of this trio, as he's now the best of the GC contenders. We'll see that later.
Jan Bakelants was just empty and loses 13 seconds to Koretzky and Bobridge. He completes today's Top 10.
In the background, we can already see the peloton approaching, led by yellow jersey Houle. He was 2'03" ahead of Vichot before the stage; with the 22 bonus seconds the latter has won today, he can afford to lose 1'41".
And Hugo Houle easily takes 11th place, extending his lead in the points standings a little more. The pack's deficit is 1'18" - he defends his yellow jersey - however, given tomorrow's really hard finish, it could be the last time. The peloton finally loses 16" on Bakelants and 29" on Koretzky and Bobridge.
Here's the rest of today's Top 20:
12. Carlos Betancourt
13. Toms Skujins
14. Andrew Talansky
15. Patrick Schelling
16. Leopold Konig
17. Mohamed Shawal Anuar Aziz
18. Willie Smit
19. Emanuel Buchmann
20. Jianhua Ji
It was an exciting stage, were it seemed clear for a very long time that the pack would easily reel in the escapees - but they managed their efforts very well and finally salvaged some seconds on three of the main stage favorites - well done! And now, let's celebrate three of them!
The first one is of course Damiano Caruso, today's stage winner! He knew he was the best sprinter from the breakaway, and he timed his sprint perfectly well - a great win for him!
Arthur Vichot just comes short of the stage win, as today's runner-up. The podium is completed by Daniel Alexander Jaramillo, who wasn't able to make good use of their numerical advantage with his teammate Roman.
As we said before, Hugo Houle was able to retain his yellow jersey for one more day. He must be very happy that the speed went up again in the final kilometers, as Arthur Vichot is trailling him by just 23" in the GC.
The other escapees weren't as close pre-stage, and with Harrison and Pons having lost 5 minutes today, it's now Vichot's teammate Michel Kreder on 3rd place.
We mentioned earlier that Bobridge is now the best of the GC contenders. He's 6th, 1'14" behind Houle. Can he take over yellow tomorrow? Or is the final hill too long for the Aussie?
Houle is of course still leading the points standings, too - now ahead of Sam Harrison, Lionel Coutinho and Arthur Vichot, who all have a total of 30 points, 20 points behind Houle. The officials have decided that Harrison will wear the jersey in Houle's stead tomorrow - again, a decision that isn't really comprehensible.
But now, let's come to the 2nd escapee on the podium - it's Arthur Vichot! He's tied for first with Daniel Alexander Jaramillo in the KoM standings, but thanks to his much better GC position he gets to wear the jersey tomorrow!
Wojciech Pszczolarski and Jasper Stuyven have dropped from 1st to 3rd meanwhile.
And as promised, here's the third breakaway rider we see on the podium: Amanuel Gebrezgabihier! He was 2" ahead of Aleksandar Roman pre-stage, and as both won exactly the same amount of bonus seconds today, he now has this 2" lead in the U25 standings!
It was very close in the end, though, as Sam Oomen, who dropped to 3rd, is just 6 seconds down! So we might very well have another change already tomorrow - it's fun to have such a close fight among the rising stars, though!
We've had a new leader in the team standings every day so far - and so we do today! ENI - MOL capitalize on the 23" lead they had on Delvaux pre stage, as both teams pass EA Vesuvio who drop to 3rd, 1'03" back. But the tough stages are just about to start - so we better be prepared for more leader changes, in all standings.
We've seen a stage where the strongest puncheurs were named as top favorites - and they mostly delivered. However, their teams weren't able to catch 7 breakaway riders, allowing Caruso to take a great win today. Houle was able to hang on to his jersey - let's see if he can repeat that tomorrow, where a long final ascent awaits us! Stay tuned!
Volta a Portugal 
