"The plan is to try to defend this jersey" - Mauro Schmid hopes for first stage-race win in Belgium

Mauro Schmid is one of the riders that broke through the most in the past year, and is today on the verge of taking his first stage-race victory at the Baloise Belgium Tour.

Yesterday during the queen stage he made it into the crucial move that went away inside the final 50 kilometers, and managed to finish on the same time as Quinten Hermans in the final hilltop sprint. The four seconds he won on the road to Tim Wellens were exactly the same that separated them at the start of the day, however the Swiss ended up in the leader's jersey at the end of the day.

“I knew it could be very close in the end and it would come down to the bonifications at the finish and in the Golden Kilometer if we stayed together," Schmid described. "I tried to save the legs a bit for the finale, but I felt the effort on the last climb, where I knew Quinten would be strong."

Schmid sprinted to second place, however got a bigger reward. "When I noticed Tim was dropped, I searched for the last ounce of energy to gain as much time as possible, and I’m happy I got rewarded with the leader’s jersey," he added. He now heads into the final stage of the race in the lead, however with the same times as Tim Wellens.

"We’ll see what we can do on the last stage, but the plan is to try to defend this jersey and help Fabio go for the win," he concluded. Today's stage sees it's finale in Beringen and the overall classification can come down to how well the two riders finish on the stage.