Lenny Martinez takes stage win & race lead at Tour de Romandie 2025: "In the end I had the punch to beat João Almeida - I'm really happy"
Cycling
Bahrain - Victorious have some lofty ambitions for Lenny Martinez after his big-money move from Groupama - FDJ over the off-season. On the Queen Stage of the 2025 Tour de Romandie, the Frenchman proved why, out-kicking Joao Almeida at the top of the Thyon 2000 to take the stage win and move into the lead of the general classification.
The battle between Martinez and Almeida was an incredibly exciting one on the final climb, with the pair trading the front consistently after having broke free of their rivals. "It was a super long climb, so here you just have to try to not go too deep for too long, otherwise you can get tired very quickly," Martinez explained in his post-stage interview with reporters after crossing the line victorious.
"It was really hard, but we rode really well as a pair, and in the end I had the punch to beat João Almeida, but he was really strong too, so I'm really happy to win here today for the team," continues the 21-year-old proudly. "I didn't want to go ahead alone, and I think they [UAE Team Emirates - XRG] were trying to distance the Astana rider for the GC, so that benefited me a bit. They set a good pace, so he was distanced, and then I went with João, and we rode super strong."
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OUI LENNY MARTINEZ !! Le Français prend le meilleur sur Joao Almeida à Thyon 2000 et remporte la 4e étape du Tour de Romandie ! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/TYBP27hjmb
— Eurosport France (@Eurosport_FR) May 3, 2025
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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MarkFour07-11-2026 - This is a really interesting idea, which, if well prepared could even be very successful. Very little money needs to be involved for a first season and any success could lead to rapid interest from sponsors.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
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