photo credits @ Itzulia
Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM) claimed today’s Queen Stage in the Itzulia Basque Country, after the French neo-pro beat Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) in a two-up sprint.
After igniting a series of attacks along the day’s eight categorized climbs, the duo finally escaped on the Trabakua climb with 30 kilometers to go.
Despite a daredevil descent into Eibar, Seixas couldn’t distance Lipowittz, culminating into a two-rider battle for the finish during the closing few hundred meters.
Race Highlights
The general classification battle ignited on the fearsome Krabelin climb, with Lipowitz executing a sharp attack, a move that was closely marked by Seixas.
Meanwhile, further up the road, Marc Soler finally managed to break away from the remnants of the early escape group, with Ben Healy giving chase.
From there, everything exploded on the Alto de Izua when Seixas unleashed his power, quickly blowing past Soler and Healy, with only Lipowitz able to follow the Frenchman’s wheel.
With 29 kilometers remaining, Javier Romo managed to bridge across to the leading duo. However, disaster struck almost immediately after Romo clipped Lipowitz’s rear wheel and crashed.
Behind, Primoz Roglic chased in earnest, following just seconds behind the leaders.
On the run-in to the finish, Seixas did the lion’s share of the pacing, while Lipowitz rode more conservatively, taking occasional pulls at the front.
Lipowitz later tried to ambush the young Frenchman with a blistering late attack during the final uphill. But Seixas was unshakeable, matching his German rival’s acceleration and powering past him in the final meters to secure his third stage victory of this year’s race, firmly cementing his grip on the yellow jersey.
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