At 37, good old Damiano Caruso blasts to first victory in three years in stage 4 of Tour of Burgos!

In Thursday's spectacular stage, we saw the first real differences in the GC. The talented Bisiaux surprised many big names in the final and sprinted to the stage win. The Frenchman also took the leader's jersey, which he would obviously like to keep on Friday.

That would have to happen in a 162.7-kilometer stage between the start in Doña Santos and the finish in Regumiel de la Sierra. There would be some ups and downs along the way, but the two climbs of the day were saved for the end. The last climb peaked just over 10 kilometers from the finish, which seemed to favor the strong punchers.

Seven riders were allowed to break away from the start. With Rui Oliveira (UAE Emirates-XRG), Ben Zwiehoff (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Javier Romo (Movistar), Caruso, Rui Costa (EF-Education-EasyPost), Nickolas Zukowsky (Q36.5), and Larry Warbasse (Tudor), it was a diverse but above all dangerous leading group.

Julien Bernard (Lidl-Trek) joined José María García (Illes Balears Arabay) in the chase, but their long attempt ultimately proved unsuccessful. The seven riders had gained about five minutes on the peloton, and despite a courageous effort, Bernard and García were unable to close the gap. A genuine chasse patate!

With a lead of more than three minutes, the leading group reached the first climb. With just over 40 kilometers to go, things were looking good for the seven breakaway riders. It only got better, as the peloton didn't seem to be getting any closer. It slowly became clear that the winner would be one of the seven riders at the front. But which one of them would be the smartest (or strongest)?

It was Caruso who took the initiative at the front. The Italian accelerated and seemed to leave all his fellow breakaway riders behind, although Zwiehoff clung to the veteran's rear wheel with his last ounce of strength. On the less steep sections of the Alto del Cargadero, Caruso then dropped the German and began a solo breakaway.

At that moment, the race behind him also came alive. We saw several accelerations from the peloton, but Caruso was unbeatable at the front. The Italian came out on top with more than a minute's lead over the first chasers and sailed solo to the finish line over the last 11 kilometers. At 37, the veteran claimed the eighth victory of his career, his first in three years. Bisiaux finished in the peloton and kept his leader's jersey.