Barreda holds overall lead after day 4

After two stage wins during the first three days, Joan Barreda could defend his overall lead at the second part of the two-day marathon stage on Wednesday. Opening the track on this stage four following his victory on Tuesday, Barreda took it easy to bring home his bike in good shape, as there was no service allowed after yesterday´s extreme mountain stage.

Paulo Goncalves meanwhile recovered today, despite a broken roadbook navigation. He finished seventh.

Joan Barreda: "I was riding very smooth and easy today, opening the track without risking anything. It was a long stage and at one point the roadbook seemed to be wrong. It took me quite some time to re-assure where to go, and I returned a few times and lost several minutes on my competitors. Nevertheless I could finish the marathon stage well and defend my lead again, keeping me on top of the standings since the first day. That is very satisfying. Tomorrow will be a very long stage with over 900 km, and lot of sand too."

Paulo Goncalves: "I am very disappointed, as I lost the chance for a top position yesterday with a small mistake going down from the top of the 4,300 m mountain. Taking a steep downhill, I realised this was not the right path, but it was impossible to return up. I continued going downhill and found Ruben Faria on the ground after a crash. I called the helicopter and waited until he got evacuated. Meanwhile, a group of other riders arrived, also on the wrong way, and together we worked our way through the wilderness, but we lost over two hours. Today, I recovered even with the handicap of a broken roadbook reader to finish seventh. Now I will do everything to help my teammate Joan defend his overall lead."

HRC Honda