photo credits @ Itzulia
The Itzulia Basque Country 2025 made its return with an individual time trial that started and finished at the Buesa Arena stadium in Vitoria-Gasteiz. The start from within the stadium was one of the first notable innovations in the 64-year history of the Itzulia.
The day began with a flurry of riders taking the provisional lead, until Ethan Hayter (SOQ, 142) arrived and set the fastest time of 18:42. Minutes later, the accomplished rider Victor Campenaerts (TVL, 207) posted the fastest intermediate times, but couldn’t surpass the British rider. Other riders, such as Ben Healy (91, EFE), trailed by 12 seconds. His teammate Max Schachmann (SOQ, 144) edged him out for first place by just six seconds.
Riders continued to cross the finish line, but none came close to matching the German’s time. Teammate Ilan Van Wilder (SOQ, 145) took third in the provisional standings, securing a 1-2-3 for the Soudal Quick-Step team.
Aleksandr Vlasov (RBH, 76) came close to Schachmann’s time and moved into provisional third, just 10 seconds behind the Soudal Quick-Step rider. A little later, Florian Lipowitz (RBH, 71) of Red Bull Bora Hansgrohe trailed the leader by just one second.
Joao Almeida (UAD, 1) crossed the line at the same time as Schachmann, but was edged out by a mere hundredth of a second. It couldn’t get any tighter. Among those still to finish were top contenders like Daniel Felipe Martinez (RBH, 72), Pello Bilbao (TBV, 31), and one of the stage favorites, Brandon McNulty (UAD, 6).
Ultimately, the Soudal Quick-Step rider maintained his lead, securing first place ahead of Joao Almeida and Florian Lipowitz.
