Tom Pidcock triumphs in the fourth stage of the AlUla Tour, from Maraya to Skyviews of Harrat Uwayrid, and puts a serious stamp on the final victory in the Saudi race. The British rider from Q36.5 Pro Cycling made a selection on the 1200-meter final climb placed just 8 kilometers from the finish. The overall classification leader preceded a group of three riders in a sprint won by Alan Hatherly (Jayco-AlUla) and Rainer Kepplinger (Bahrain-Victorious). Great performance by Thomas Pesenti and Alessandro Fancellu, both finishing in the top ten, ending sixth and eighth respectively.

THE RACE. We had to wait for the first intermediate sprint, located after 12km, to see the day's breakaway take shape. The pair from XDS Astana Team Alessandro Romele and Alexandr Vinokurov, followed closely by the most combative rider Jens Reinders (Wagner Bazin WB), initiated the move. The three quickly found an agreement and immediately put 1'15" between themselves and the peloton, from which new riders tried to escape. Six riders (Yuma Koishi from JCL Team Ukyo, Muhammad Shahmir Aiman Abdul Halim from Terengganu Cycling Team, Andreas Miltiadis and Kongphob Timachai from Roojai Insurance, Ali Jehad Alhassan from the Saudi national team, and Henri Renard Haquin from Wagner Bazin WB) launched a counterattack to try to rejoin the head of the race, which they managed with some difficulty several kilometers later. At this point, the 8 breakaway riders (reduced to 7 after Alhassan lost contact) continued with a steady pace, maintaining around 2 minutes over the peloton, which gradually reduced the gap. With 35km to go, only 5 remained as fatigue caused Vinokurov, Timachai, and Miltiadis to lose the wheels of their companions. They approached the final climb to Skyviews of Harrat Uwayrid with just 30 seconds, an insufficient margin to avoid being reabsorbed, which happened with 11km to go. On the steepest sections of the final climb, Tom Pidcock took the initiative and set a pace that severely tested many riders, selecting the best meter by meter. Soon, only his main general classification rivals, Kepplinger and Hatherly, remained on his wheel. However, with 9.2km to go, they could do nothing against Pidcock's new acceleration, who broke away solo. Behind, Eddie Dunbar (Jayco-Alula) and a surprising Johannes Kulset (Uno-X) came back, but at the start of the last 8 kilometers of false flat, they were 26 seconds behind Pidcock. He never looked back and, helped by some skirmishes behind him, secured his second victory in the Saudi race, strengthening his overall lead with one stage to go. The day's podium was completed by Hatherly (Jayco-Alula) and Kepplinger (Bahrain-Victorious), with Kulset, 4th, becoming the new white jersey. 24 seconds back, Thomas Pesenti (Soudal-Quick Step) led the second chasing group, finishing 6th, which also saw Alessandro Fancellu (JCL Team Ukyo, 8th) finish in the top ten.

STAGE RESULTS

1. Thomas Pidcock (GBR/Q36.5) - 3:09:46

2. Alan Hatherly (RSA/Jayco-AlUla) at 0:12

3. Rainer Kepplinger (AUT/Bahrain-Victorious) at 0:12

4. Johannes Kulset (NOR/Uno-X Mobility) at 0:12

5. Eddie Dunbar (IRL/Jayco-AlUla) at 0:16

6. Thomas Pesenti (ITA/Soudal-Quick Step) at 0:24

7. Xabier Mikel Azparren (SPA/Q36.5) at 0:24

8. Alessandro Fancellu (ITA/JCL-Ukyo) at 0:24

9. Joris Delbove (FRA/TotalEnergies) at 0:24

10. Max van der Meulen (NED/Bahrain-Victorious) at 0:24

OVERALL CLASSIFICATION

1. Thomas Pidcock (GBR/Q36.5) - 13:54:22

2. Rainer Kepplinger (AUT/Bahrain-Victorious) at 0:29

3. Alan Hatherly (RSA/Jayco-AlUla) at 0:32

4. Fredrik Dversnes (NOR/Uno-X Mobility) at 1:11

5. Johannes Kulset (NOR/Uno-X Mobility) at 1:13

6. Yannis Voisard (SUI/Tudor Pro Cycling) at 1:14

7. Adne Holter (NOR/Uno-X Mobility) at 1:21

8. Frank van den Broek (NED/Picnic-PostNL) at 1:25

9. Max van der Meulen (NED/Bahrain-Victorious) at 1:27

10. Alessandro Fancellu (ITA/JCL-Ukyo) at 1:38