Remco Evenepoel said to himself “confident” to be able to keep his yellow jersey as leader of the Tour of the Basque Country this Friday at the end of the 5th stage where he managed to overthrow the Slovenian Primoz Roglic.
Starting 16 km from the finish on the easiest portion of the ascent of Karabieta, Evenepoel had calculated his shot well to trap Roglic.
“The first three and a half kilometers were steep and then there was a flatter section. Everyone tries to recover in sections like this. These are difficult and tricky moments because everyone wants to breathe a little. It’s that’s the time to go. If there are guys who are a bit on the limit, they don’t know how to follow and that’s what happened. With the team, we had planned that I attack there”explained Evenepoel at the microphone of Antoine Plouvin just following the arrival of this 5th stage in which he took 3rd place.
Now first overall with two seconds ahead of Daniel Philippe MartinezEvenepoel savoure. “It’s a dream and a source of pride to be a leader in a race like the Tour of the Basque Country. Having the yellow jersey before the last stage gives a lot of confidence. it gives you a mental boost.”