Joao Almeida soloed to an impressive Tour of the Basque Country stage four victory on Thursday, also claiming the overall lead.
The UAE Team Emirates rider capitalised on a tricky final climb to leave his competitors behind on the 169.6 kilometre run from Beasain to Markina-Xemein.
The race was decided on the Category 1 Izua mountain pass, with Almeida taking the lead and leaving his general classification contenders behind.
The Portuguese rider opened up a gap of around half a minute on the chase group and maintained it through the descent to the finish, crossing the line 28 seconds ahead of his rivals.
BOOOOM! 🔥 Joao Almeida storms to victory on stage 4 of Itzulia Basque Country and pulls on the leader’s jersey! Brilliant win! 1-2 for UAE with Del Toro finishing 2nd. #Itzulia2025https://t.co/DB2e2TZmwy pic.twitter.com/ngNEgM802s
— Eemeli (@LosBrolin) April 10, 2025
Almeida's teammate Isaac del Toro crossed the line second, ahead of Soudal Quick-Step's Max Schachmann, who won the opening day time-trial.
Schachmann grabbed a bonus for making the podium, allowing him to sit second overall, trailing Almeida by 30 seconds, with Red Bull's Florian Lipowitz a further eight seconds back in third place.
Stage five on Friday takes riders a hilly 172.4 kilometres from Urduna to Gernika-Lumo.