Milan wins fifth stage as Tiberi keeps lead

Jonathan Milan won a second straight sprint finish to take the fifth stage of the UAE Tour in Dubai on Friday.

The Italian edged out Norwegian Erlend Blikra and compatriot Matteo Malucelli in the charge to the line at the end of a flat 166km run around Dubai.

For the second straight day, Milan’s Lidl-Trek team managed the stage perfectly, this time reeling in a breakaway trio three kilometres from the line.

But Milan was still badly placed and had lost his lead-out men as the sprinters jostled for position going into the final 500 metres.

Milan said: “Having finished third here last year, I knew how important it was to be in the front in the second last corner. But that was still very far from the finish line, my team had controlled the stage very well but at the end it was difficult to stay together but they positioned me really well and I found my way to sprint.

“I’m super happy with this result. I wanted to deliver the best result after the huge efforts by my teammates. Tomorrow it won’t be a stage for me but I hope to win on Sunday again”.

In the pack, leader Antonio Tiberi had an untroubled day and retained his 21-second lead over Mexican Isaac Del Toro, while the other contenders for victory are more than a minute behind.

Saturday’s potentially pivotal stage finishes at the summit of Jebel Hafeet after a 10.6 km climb with an average gradient of 6.9 per cent.

Meanwhile, Joao Almeida delivered a trademark solid performance today to finish third on Stage 2 of the Volta ao Algarve, crossing the line on the iconic summit finish at Alto da Foia after a hard-fought day of climbing.

The 147.2 km route from Portimao to Alto da Foia featured rugged terrain and steep gradients on the final ascent, where the peloton’s strongest climbers came to the fore. A fierce battle unfolded on the iconic Portuguese climb, with Paul Seixas (Decathlon CMA CGM) taking a breakthrough victory – outsprinting both Juan Ayuso (Lidl-Trek) and Almeida in a reduced uphill battle.

Almeida rode tactically throughout the day, staying attentive in the lead group and responding at key moments on the climb before launching a powerful effort in the finale to secure a well-earned third place behind two of the fastest finishers in the group.

Brandon McNulty was absent in the finale due to a crash on the base of the ascent which hampered his chances of a top finish.

The American was able to remount and take the 15th spot, just 37” down.

Almeida said: “It was a very hard final climb as we expected. It ended up being very explosive, very stop-start, so it was hard to get a good rhythm. For us it was such a pity that Brandon crashed at the bottom, as I think he would have been in the front with me and we could have played it well in the end.

“I tried to attack close to the finish but couldn’t gap the guys and paid for it a bit in the sprint.”