Carlos Rodríguez "taking small steps forward" as he nets first pro win

Carlos Rodríguez is one of the most talented climbers on the uprising of the cycling world and yesterday he captured the first of likely many pro wins of his career. The fifth stage of the Itzulia Basque Country proved to be the day where he grabbed the win, which came out of a successful breakaway.

It took a long time for a group to go out in front, and it was never allowed much freedom as firstly Pello Bilbao was present in the group - who later dropped in a tactical move - and Marc Soler who was also a threat to the general standings; “In the beginning, when we were with five or six people, I couldn't take over because I had Dani behind me and I had no intention of helping riders who went against his interests. Then Marc [Soler] was the strongest and he showed that clearly with his attack. I would have loved to help him and I'm sorry, but I had to protect Dani and Adam and he was a threat to us. We have to congratulate him on the great stage he rode, but that's cycling."

In the final 60 kilometers Marc Soler tore the group up, dropping everyone but Rodríguez. The Spaniard didn't collaborate with the UAE Team Emirates rider as he was a direct challenger of his teammates, and took advantage of the energy he saved to attack towards the top of the final climb of the day and went on solo towards the finish.

Despite almost being caught in the excruciatingly steep final ramp, he held on to take the win: “The feeling is good and to get a win in such an important race, with riders of such a high level, is very good. I can't believe it. I'm taking small steps forward and growing, that's what I have to do," he concluded.

In today's queen stage, Rodríguez will switch rolls and be a part of the INEOS block who will be eyeing the overall classification win with Daniel Martínez who is sitting in second place only two seconds behind Remco Evenepoel.