On a day marked by wind and crashes, Kristoff is the fastest of depleted group at Ruta Del Sol

Alexander Kristoff won the third stage of the Ruta Del Sol. The Norwegian from Uno-X Mobility was the best in a difficult sprint after a day full of wind and chaos, where a crash caused a split in the last thirty kilometers. Ben Turner finished second, ahead of Tom Pidcock.

After two hectic days, in which the winner of stage one, Maxim Van Gils, lost the leader's jersey to Pavel Sivakov in the second stage, won by Tom Pidcock, it was the sprinters' turn on Friday. That was the plan, right? The course was almost flat, but the road still inclined towards the final, where the finish line was on an annoyingly steep strip. So it was anyone's guess what would happen.

It would certainly not have been for the early breakaway on Friday. The three men who took off (including Guillermo Silva of Caja Rural—Seguros RGA in the mountain jersey) did not have enough to disrupt the peloton. They came closer and closer, and in the last 40 kilometers, the lead was less than a minute. On the hills, the pace increased, and it was clear that the leading group had no chance.

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Major crash, narrow roads and golden kilometer create chaos

Strong winds also caused uneasiness, and suddenly, UAE Team Emirates - XRG took the game into their own hands. This did not cause splits in the peloton, but a crash about 23 kilometers from the finish did. This allowed about thirty riders to join the front of the race. There was a fierce battle in the golden kilometer, with Tom Pidcock (Q36.5 Pro Cycling) and Markus Hoelgaard (Uno-X Mobility) claiming the bonus seconds. Leader Pavel Sivakov was nowhere to be seen.

Meanwhile, the teams at the front continued to ride hard, making a real bunch sprint unlikely. Alexander Kristoff (Uno-X Mobility) was one of the only real sprinters to stay with the front group, and his team did their best to bring him up to speed. The final kilometer was uphill, which suited the big Norwegian, who managed to overtake the surprising Ben Turner at the end.

Result stage 3 Ruta Del Sol 2025

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