Laporte sprints to fifth after surprise attack, Zingle finishes sixth in fourth stage of Ruta del Sol
# Laporte Shines with Fifth Place Finish, Zingle in Sixth at Ruta del Sol Stage Four
In a gripping fourth stage of the Ruta del Sol, Team Visma | Lease a Bike faced both challenges and triumphs as riders Christophe Laporte and Axel Zingle finished fifth and sixth, respectively. The stage unfolded with a tough early phase where three cyclists made a brief breakaway. However, their efforts were met with resistance from teams eager to maintain control of the race.
As the peloton approached the finish line, the Dutch team executed their usual strategy by advancing to the front, similar to their approach in the previous stage. With just six kilometers remaining, Laporte seized the moment, launching a surprise attack alongside Tim Wellens. Unfortunately, their ambitious bid for victory was ultimately caught, resulting in a frenetic bunch sprint.
Reflecting on the race, team director Marc Reef commented, “We had hoped for more today. The plan was to go for the sprint with Christophe, but when Wellens attacked in the finale, Christophe followed him. The guys then did a great job switching their focus to Axel, but unfortunately he hit the front a little too early. Christophe still delivered a strong sprint, but of course we would have liked to take the win.”
In the final standings, Tom Crabbe from Team Flanders – Baloise emerged victorious, finishing with a time of 3:50:02, closely followed by Søren Wærenskjold from Uno-X Mobility and Sandy Dujardin from TotalEnergies in second and third place, respectively.
### Stage Results:
1. Tom Crabbe (Team Flanders – Baloise) – 3:50:02
2. Søren Wærenskjold (Uno-X Mobility) – +0:00:00
3. Sandy Dujardin (TotalEnergies) – +0:00:00
5. Christophe Laporte (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) – +0:00:00
6. Axel Zingle (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) – +0:00:00
### Overall Rankings:
1. Iván Romeo (Movistar Team) – 15:03:06
2. Andreas Leknessund (Uno-X Mobility) – +0:00:07
3. Romain Grégoire (Groupama – FDJ United) – +0:00:49
4. Christophe Laporte (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) – +0:00:50
32. Axel Zingle (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) – +0:01:07
With two stages remaining, Team Visma | Lease a Bike faces a critical opportunity to secure more podium finishes and perhaps, a stage victory.
