Tim Wellens of Lotto Soudal has won the fourth stage of the Tour Of Guangxi in China.
The final World Tour race of the 2017 season had Quick Step’s Fernando Gaviria in the leader’s jersey for a 151km stage from Nanning City to Nongla where the stage finished with a category one climb.
Pavel Kotchekov (Katusha), Victor Campenaerts (Lotto-Jumbo), Lennard Hofstede (Sunweb) and Antonio Molina (Caja Rural) were in the early break and were able to go seven minutes clear after 32kms of racing.
The gap was at 7.30 after 60kms but down to 4.30 when Campenaerts took the first sprint.
By the time, Molina took the third sprint, the peloton were breathing down their necks so Campenaerts went away only to be caught with six kilometres remaining.
Onto the final three kilometre category one climb and it was Nicholas Roche of BMC, Tim Wellens of Lotto Soudal and Trek’s Bauke Mollema who had got away.
Tim Wellens pushed and he took the win and the lead of the race in 3.23.18 with Mollema in second and Roche who took over as the KOM leader from his team mate Silvan Dillier.
Kev Monks for Digital Sports Group
Source: DSG
