Henok Mulueberhan is now a permanent fixture at the Tour of Magnificent Qinghai. Every time he lines up at the start of the Chinese race, he always finds a way to make his mark, and this time was no exception. At the Huzhu finish line, he won the sprint, imposing himself on a select group and perfectly completing the work done by his team.

Henok recounted how he was overwhelmed by the affection of the local crowd, who are now accustomed to witnessing his victories. "I've already had the chance to win this year, but this is my first victory of 2026 in Team Xds Astana colors and I'm particularly happy – Henok explained to tuttobiciweb – my preparation for this race was anything but easy. I wasn't feeling well, and once I arrived, I started suffering from stomach problems right from the first stage. I was struggling, but I told myself I couldn't give up. I kept fighting, and on the climb I felt much better. It's an important victory for my morale and especially for our Chinese sponsors."

Today Team Astana was nothing short of perfect. At the foot of the climb, Cristian Scaroni was the first to break ranks and launch an attack on the breakaway riders. Henok Mulueberhan initially climbed at his own pace and then tried to make a difference with Jon Agirre. The Kazakh team exploited their numerical superiority thanks to good coordination among their athletes and managed to secure the maximum result. "When you face a race like this, it's difficult to employ great tactics, but I must say that my team was incredibly strong. First we tried to control the breakaway, and then we executed an excellent team game. At one point we were down to three riders, and the Team Eskaltel guy could have refused to pull, but instead he gave us a huge hand even when we were caught. At that point Rodriguez was perfect – he put himself completely at my service as a lead-out man and literally launched me toward victory."

This is Henok Mulueberhan's third stage victory at the Tour of Magnificent Qinghai, but the Eritrean is already an integral part of the race's history, being the only athlete to have won the general classification twice. To achieve a hat-trick, the time bonuses will once again be crucial. "It's not a simple race, especially because it gets harder every day. I normally live at around 2,300 meters altitude and suffer less, but there are other factors at play. Here in China you have to stay alert throughout the race – there are no uphill finishes and everything is decided by time bonuses," Mulueberhan continued. "Personally, I feel very comfortable in this type of race. The team gives me plenty of space and often the stages end in sprints with select groups. This year I've improved a lot on climbs and I consider myself one of the fastest climbers here. I hope to bring home another victory."