Natnael Tesfatsion beats favourite Giulio Ciccone to win Circuito de Getxo

Natnael Tesfatsion has won the Circuito de Getxo. The 27-year-old Eritrean was the fastest in a sprint from a reduced group. Pre-race favourite Giulio Ciccone had attacked earlier and therefore chose not to rely on his sprint. The Lidl-Trek Italian was unable to make the move stick, however, and eventually had to settle for sixth place.

The Circuito de Getxo served as Sunday’s traditional follow-up to the Clásica San Sebastián, which had been won by Remco Evenepoel on Saturday. Ciccone had also finished sixth there, but with several major names absent, he was still regarded as the rider to beat in the race from Bilbao to Getxo, covering just over 172 kilometres.

The hilly course consisted of two different circuits, each completed twice, and reached its decisive point on the Alto Pike. The Basque climb measures two kilometres and has an average gradient of 9.6 per cent. Before the race reached that point, however, an eleven-rider breakaway had gone clear, while Lidl-Trek controlled the peloton on behalf of Ciccone.

Sam Oomen increased the pace for his leader on the approach to the final ascent of the Alto Pike. Ciccone attacked one kilometre from the summit and briefly appeared to be riding clear alone. Marcel Camprubí of Pinarello-Q36.5 was able to counter, however, and that proved costly for Ciccone, who never managed to establish effective cooperation with the Spaniard.

A large group consequently returned to the front, and nobody managed to escape again. The race therefore came down to a sprint, with Bahrain Victorious and Cofidis leading the approach. Movistar ultimately claimed the victory, though, as Tesfatsion produced an impressively explosive finish. Bahrain Victorious rider Pau Miquel crossed the line in second place.

Kevin Vermaerke finished tenth, an impressive result after the UAE Team Emirates-XRG rider had crashed earlier in the race. Alex Aranburu of Cofidis, Camprubí and Polti VisitMalta’s Ludovico Crescioli completed the top five, with Ciccone finishing sixth. The next Spanish race begins shortly, with the Vuelta a Burgos next on the calendar.