This victory was not like the others for Matteo Malucelli in the first stage of the Tour of Hainan. At the finish line in Qionghai, the top executives of XDS, the Chinese brand that not only sponsors the short stage race but also, since this year, the Astana team, were present. Under their eyes, the rider from Forlì, stimulated by what he himself defined as "healthy pressure", did not disappoint expectations and gave them a victory with special weight and value.

This was confirmed by the euphoria and jubilant cheers that accompanied the awards ceremony of the Italian rider, who was called multiple times to pose with the bike and the managers of a brand that, by entering the World Tour through technical supply and sponsorship of the Kazakh team, is gaining full visibility and satisfaction.

In this regard, Malucelli (who previously raced for a Chinese team - China Glory Continental Team - and had already won in China at the Tour of China) today took advantage of a stage favorable to his characteristics to contribute by securing the fifth seasonal victory for his team and his first personal win in 2025.

"The stage was very short and for us who are used to racing 200 km, it seems absurd, but it's a problem, especially after a very long journey like the one we made to get here," he said during the awards ceremony.

"In the sprint, I didn't have super good sensations, but it was too important for us to win, so I gave it my all to impose myself. I think it's normal: we need more kilometers, more hours, and more effort to make a difference in sprints. In this sense, I believe the stages in the next few days, being longer, will be even more suitable for us. My teammates? Today they were super happy to see me win, they worked all day for me and I managed to put the cherry on top. Without them, it would have been much more difficult, so the credit for the victory goes to them too," Matteo said before explaining better how important it was today to put his wheel in front of everyone.

"A success like this definitely unblocks you, helps you be more serene and reassures the entire environment. When your sponsors come to races, there's always extra pressure and sometimes this can play tricks on you, other times, like today, it gives you that extra confidence and grit to win. They asked me to be performant in these types of races and today I did my best," declared the Astana rider, certain that from tomorrow the XDS-Astana approach to the race will be different.

"Today we knew everyone would keep an eye on us because we're the only World Tour team, in the next few days we'll be even more controlled but, having already won and having removed a weight from both myself and the team, we can all race much more relaxed."

With this spirit, it's not at all excluded that, starting from tomorrow, new joys may come for the top management of the Kazakh formation and the main sponsor's executives, people with whom, like the materials they provide, Matteo had the opportunity to become familiar some time ago before officially starting his 2025.

"I met them in December in China during a visit for the bike and team presentation. The vehicle they provide us is truly fast and performs well even uphill, and my teammates have demonstrated this. Lopez won yesterday at the Tour of Hellas, and Scaroni previously showed that when the road goes up, the bike is excellent, so the results speak for themselves. When we say the bike is good, it's not just marketing, but pure reality testified by facts," stated a Malucelli who appeared perfectly integrated and comfortable in the Astana environment.

"With about half the team and many Italians, I had already raced in the past, in Gazprom or other teams. With Masnada and Ballerini, for example, I was already in Androni. Apart from riders, I also knew a large part of the staff because they're Italian, so I immediately felt very good in the team."

Here, Matteo, racing at the UAE Tour (where he was a victim of a crash that kept him off the bike for a few weeks) and in Belgium, also got to know the last Tour of Hainan winner Aaron Gate, who presented himself at Qionghai with important ambitions like him.

"I have a good relationship with Aaron, he is mainly here to do the overall classification because he's stronger than me uphill, which is why he won the general classification last year, so he will certainly try to confirm himself. We have two different but simultaneously common goals, so we'll try to help each other and collect the maximum for the team because the team wants to win, show itself, and collect as many UCI points as possible. Do we talk about this situation between us? It's not something we lose sleep over. We try to do our best and then, week by week, when the rankings come out, we evaluate how things are going. I don't hide that during the race, at certain moments, this dynamic can have its impact, but we always try to race with the freest head possible because we know there are many factors that can come into play and that it's not the single race that makes the difference, but what the entire team will have been able to achieve throughout the entire season."

Guided by this mentality, Malucelli will try to leave his mark wherever the road allows him to unleash his horses. After Hainan, as he himself recounts, the target should move to the Tour of Turkey and Tour of Hungary, two races with various chances on paper for riders like him, but before that, there's a Chinese mission to complete in the best possible way and, above all, an important dedication to make.

"The victory is for my dad, or rather, my 'babbo', because I'm from Romagna: today is his birthday," Matteo concluded before going to collect jerseys on the podium and then start thinking about tomorrow, where in another stage for fast wheels, he could make his third Chinese career trip even more memorable.