Sevilla Increases Lead At Vuelta a Chihuahua
Parral, Mexico — Rock Racing’s Oscar Sevilla increased his lead from three to six seconds with his third-place finish on Stage 4 at the Vuelta a Chihuahua.
Sevilla finished 19 seconds behind Daniel Moreno (Caisse D'Epargne) in Thursday’s 119-mile (192 km) race from Guachochi to Parral. Previous race leader Michael Rasmussen (Tecos Trek) was second, two seconds behind Moreno.
Sevilla widened his lead over Gregorio Ladino (Tecos Trek) by sprinting ahead of last year’s Vuelta a Chihuahua runner-up and the 2009 UCI Americas Tour champion on the slightly uphill run-in to the finish. Ladino appears to be Sevilla’s only serious contender with two stages to go. Rui A. Da Costa (Caisse D’Epargne) is third, 1:03 off the lead, while fourth-placed Dario Cioni (ISD) is 5:13 behind.
For the fourth straight day, Rock Racing was the aggressor, using Glen Chadwick, David Vitoria and José Gutierrez to set a feverish pace that rapidly whittled the front group down to fewer than two-dozen riders.
“We drilled it in the cross/tailwind with Paco (Francisco Mancebo) and Oscar on our wheels,” Chadwick said. “It even put Ladino out the back. But Tecos clawed back up to us before the first King of the Mountain sprint.”
Vitoria remains the sprint classification leader, six points ahead of Rasmussen. Friday’s 88-mile (142 km) stage includes only one rated climb – right from the start in Parral – as well as two sprints. The race ends Saturday with a nearly flat, 72-mile (118 km) stage.
Photos: Courtesy Alex Aguirre
Related Posts:
Leave a Response
Entries(RSS)