Tour de Murcia 2025: Switzerland's Fabio Christen oꦯf Team Q365 Pro Cycling celebrates at finish line as race winner (Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Ti𓆏m Wellens of UAE Team Emirates-XRG leads the breakawayon 199.6km one-day race from J𝓀umilla to Murcia(Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
The breakaway with 20km to go (L to R): Tim Wellens of UAE Team Emirates-XRG, Clement Berthet of Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale, Eric Antonio Fagúndez of Burgos Burpe𓆉llet BH and Simone Velasco of Team XDS Astana (Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
A general view of the peloton(Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Isaac Del Toro and Tim Wellens of UAE Team Emirates-XRG compeꦦte during the Vuelta Ciclista a la Region de Murcia Costa Calida(Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Igor Arri🔯eta of UAE🦋 Team Emirates-XRG leads the peloton(Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
USA's Stephen😼 Bassett of Project Echelon Raci🎃ng rides through a corner on a descent(Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
A view of the peloton headed to Murcia(Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Nairo Quin🗹tana of Team Movistar at the start in Jumilla(Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Christen was alone✅ for Q36.5 Pro Cycling and against three riders from UAE Team Emirates-XRG, three from XDS Astana and a 𒁏few others, but beat them all with a perfectly executed and powerful sprint finish.
Tim Wellens led out his UAE Team Emirates-XRG teammate Isaac del Toro but Chri🔯sten jumped before the young Mexican and opened a gap and surged to victory.
Aurélien Parent-Peintre (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) took sec𒅌ond and Christian Scaroni was third as XDS Astana 𝔍placed three riders in the top five but Christen and Q36.5 took the victory.
"I've been waiting a lot for this win, so it means a lot," Christen said. "The team did an amazing job into the last ꩵclimb. I was suffering, it was really hard to stay on the wheels with the other🧔 guys. There were three rider from UAE and Astana, while I was alone.
"I knew I had to go from far out but in the last hundred metres I didn't think I'd make it, my legs were burning so much. I🎃t's unbelievable!
"I knew last season that I had the abil🥂ity to win a race and I went so close. Finally it has worked out, so I'm really happy. Now we can look forward to the rest of the season."
How it unfolded
The Vuelta a la Región de Murcia covered almost 200km and included three categorised climbs, with the Alto Cresta del Gallo coming just 13km from the finish and so likely to 🦩be decisive.
The UAE Team Emirates🐻-XRG lineup included Brandon McNulty, Tim Wellens, Jhonatan Narváe🍰z and Isaac Del Toro, making them the team to beat.
The early five-rider break was always going to suffer on the climbs and on the Alto Collado Bermejo after 115km, only José Luis Faura (Burgos Burpellet BH) and Jos&🌺eacute; María García (Illes Balears Ar꧅abay) stayed out front.
Del Toro and Wellens went on the attack on the Alto 💞Collado Bermejo and were chased by some quality riders, who sensed the race was about to be d꧟ecided. They were to be proved right.
Wellens and Del Toro were joined by several chase groups on the fast descent and so Wellens attacked again. This time Cl&eacuꦬte;ment Berthet (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale), Simone Velasco (XDS Astana) and Eric Fagúndez (Burgos Burpellet BH) joined him, forcing Movistar to pick up the chase.
At the foot of the Alto Cresta𝔉 del Gallo, the quartet led by just 20 seconds and so Wellens surged away once again, this time riding for victory. Only ♈Scaroni was able to join him but their gap was just 10 seconds as they started the descent and final 10km to the finish.
Wellens had Del Toro, McNulty and the impressive development team rider Adrià Pericas in th𒆙e chase group, while Champoussin and Fortunato were there for XDS Astana. Christen, Aurélien Paret-Peintre and Jordan Labrosse (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale), Nairo Quintana (Movistar) were also there.
The final 10km became a thrilling tactical battle. Labrosse rode for Paret-Peintre an🐈d chased down a number of attacks as UAE and XDS tried to form small attacks or control🌺 others. McNulty was dropped from the group but UAE still expected to dominate the sprint with Del Toro.
Wellens did a perfect lead out on the st🎀reets of Murcia but the Mexican missed the moment when Christen struck out early, failing to get on his wheel, as everyone also suffered on the rise to the finish line.
Christen got a gap of several bike lengths and co♛uld see victory was his, the joy of possible victory cancelling the𝔍 pain in his legs.
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Stephen is one of the most experienced member of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. He has been Head of News at Cyclingnews since 2022, before which he held the position of European editor since 2012 and previously worked for Reuters, Shift Active Media, and CyclingWeekly, among other publications.
